International Legislation
United States
While several countries have introduced sanctions targeting specific Chinese officials for the human rights abuses taking place in Xinjiang, the United States is so far the only country to have enacted legislation targeting China more broadly.
The first, the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act (UHRPA), was signed into law in June 2020. Part of the act mandates extensive annual reporting on the situation by U.S. government agencies and departments to Congress, thus effectively institutionalising attention to the Uyghur issue in U.S. foreign policy considerations.
This was followed by the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, signed into law in December 2021. This act made it U.S. policy to assume that all goods manufactured in Xinjiang are made with forced labour, blocking imports unless the goods are known to not have been made with forced labour. It also made it a requirement for firms to disclose their dealings with Xinjiang and mandated the compilation of a list of Chinese companies that have relied on forced labour.
United Kingdom
While the British government has made several announcements on potential legislative measures since January 2021, such as a review of the Modern Slavery Act and business guidance on supply chain links to forced labour in Xinjiang, there has been little in the way of concrete government action.
In November 2021, following the “Never Again” report by the UK Foreign Affairs Select Committee (FASC) outlining the UK’s responsibility to act on the human rights issues in Xinjiang, as well as the public Uyghur Tribunal hearings (which had not yet released its findings at that point), the government again refused to declare that the Chinese government actions taking place in the region constitute a genocide.
In December 2021, Trade Minister Penny Mordaunt made a statement to Politico that the government was looking ‘very, very carefully at’ policy on Xinjiang. No further updates have been forthcoming in the months since.
European Union
In September 2021, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen promised a ban on goods made with forced labour, though her comments did not mention China or Xinjiang specifically. There is currently ongoing debate on what form this ban will take and no further measures have yet been enacted.
Key Reading
New U.S. Measures on Xinjiang Produced Goods to come into Law June 2022 (techUK, January 2022)
This article provides a useful summary of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, as well as a timeline of the British government’s approach to enacting similar measures.
Uyghur Human Rights Protection Act & the U.S. Chinese Struggle and related interview with Sean Roberts (June 2020)
These commentaries from Sean Roberts both offer important insight into the content of the bill, the geopolitical context in which it was enacted and its potential impacts on China and the international community.
Never Again: The UK’s Responsibility to Act on Atrocities in Xinjiang and Beyond (Foreign Affairs Committee, July 2021)
This report contains a comprehensive account of the measures available to the UK government and international partners to stop the atrocities the Chinese government is committing in Xinjiang. It covers the multilateral action available to the UK, through the UN and other means, measures needed to remove Uyghur forced labour from UK supply chains, as well as the changes needed to the UK’s atrocity prevention strategy to improve the response to future mass atrocities.
All Reading
Reversing a previous ruling, an appeals court in the UK ordered that the country’s National Crime Agency reconsider whether to investigate if cotton imports from Xinjiang allegedly use Uyghur slave labor.
The National Crime Agency’s decision not to launch an investigation into the importation of cotton products manufactured by forced labour in Xinjiang was unlawful, the court of appeal has found.
The legislation would require the State Department to offer Uyghur language classes to diplomats, and place Uyghur speakers in all consulates in China.
An amendment to the energy bill, proposed with cross-party support, would require solar energy companies to prove that their supply chains are free of slave labour.
This article analyzes the impact of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act a year since it was signed into law, and next steps for strengthening US sanctions against goods linked to forced labour in Xinjiang.
The acting head of the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol said it has already blocked nearly $500 million worth of imports this year because it was made “wholly or in part” by Uyghur forced labor.
This portal provides statistics on shipments subjected to reviews or enforcement actions under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which prohibits the import of any goods sourced or produced wholly or in part in Xinjiang.
The High Court in London has said there is a “striking consensus” of “clear and widespread abuses” in Xinjiang’s cotton industry, despite refusing a legal challenge from Uyghur rights activists.
A Uyghur rights group’s legal challenge against the British government for not investigating the import of cotton produced in Xinjiang was dismissed by a London court on Friday.
Join for a webinar where Steptoe lawyers from the US and EU will be discussing the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), the recently-issued EU proposal for a forced labor instrument, and their potential impacts.
Featuring Commissioner Nury Turkel, a human rights advocate for Uyghur people, this event features discussion on Turkel’s advocacy efforts, and what the international community can do to safeguard religious liberty in China.
Part of the Procurement Bill legislation would allow for the discretionary exclusion of companies implicated in human rights abuses, including those used by the Chinese state to oppress minorities.
Amongst Chinese-Swedish couture designer Louise Xin’s fashion debut were signs sharing the designer’s commitment to human rights including a banner unfurled at the end of the catwalk declaring, “Free Uyghur: End All Genocide.”
Join activists, MPs, and other experts in this special event focused on Canadian government action on the Uyghur genocide, crimes against humanity, forced labour, and advancing legislation included motion M-62 on Uyghur refugee resettlement.
The Uyghur Tribunal has released its full Judgment - some 347 pages - setting out its comprehensive findings of genocide in Xinjiang against Uyghur Muslims, now complete with appendices.
At the 51st session of the Human Rights Council, representatives from the Uyghur, Tibetan, and Hong communities join voices to call on governments worldwide to take meaningful action to promote accountability and justice for victims.
The European Parliament and Council should introduce amendments to strengthen the European Commission’s proposal to enact a ban on goods made with forced labour, the Coalition to End Forced Labour in the Uyghur Region said today.
The damning findings of U.N High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet are shocking — but they should come as no surprise, considering the world has known about these abuses for years. So why isn’t the U.S. government doing more to stop them?
In a blistering report, the U.N.'s outgoing human rights chief confirmed that China has committed "serious human rights violations" against the Uyghur Muslim community, adding that such acts are potentially crimes against humanity.
"Serious human rights violations have been committed in XUAR in the context of the Government’s application of counter-’extremism’ strategies,” the U.N. office said in the report.
This Policy Brief from the Xinjiang Sanctions research project summarises the potential legal frameworks which should inform an effective sanctions strategy against forced labour in Xinjiang.
Can economic sanctions address Xinjiang forced labour? This Policy Brief from the Xinjiang Sanctions research project summarises key findings from the research, contextualising state-sponsored forced labour within Beijing’s governmental strategies for the region.
Can economic sanctions address Xinjiang forced labour? Drawing on 3 original datasets containing over 12,000 datapoints, confidential interviews and a year of research, this final report presents the most comprehensive analysis of Xinjiang sanctions to date, and offers ideas for strengthening them.
This Policy Brief from the Xinjiang Sanctions research project summarises key findings from the research and the measures adopted by Western governments in response to Xinjiang forced labour.
This Policy Brief from the Xinjiang Sanctions research project summarises the impact of Western sanctions and recommendations for more effectively targeting Xinjiang forced labour.
This Policy Brief from the Xinjiang Sanctions research project summarises the impact of current measures on solar energy products from Xinjiang and how these can be strengthened through more co-ordinated and targeted policy.
This Policy Brief from the Xinjiang Sanctions research project summarises the role of Xinjiang forced labour in the global tomato product trade, and recommendations for increasing the impact of Western sanctions on the sector.
This Policy Brief from the Xinjiang Sanctions research project summarises the role of Xinjiang forced labour in the global cotton market and the impact of Western sanctions targeting Xinjiang cotton.
A group of lawyers has urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate China's treatment of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslim populations in the Xinjiang region.
Tough new US regulations on the import of goods from the Xinjiang region of China have come into effect under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA).