We all celebrated the passage of the monumental Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act at the end of December. The bill deserved this praise and is a significant step in the collective effort to combat the Chinese Communist Party’s ongoing genocide against the Uyghur people. It’s an important first step.
Effectively reducing – or even eliminating – Uyghur forced labor in Xinjiang will require more than implementing stricter import restrictions. We must ensure all goods we purchase are slave-labor free. The United States needs to focus on domestic production to lessen dependence on imports from China and other regions marred by forced labor worldwide, incentivizing corporations to leave the region and creating economic opportunities here at home.
During this week’s State of the Union address, President Biden urged Congress to quickly pass this legislation, “[the] U.S. Innovation and Competition Act [H.R. 4521 America Competes Act of 2022], which includes several of the ideas that I proposed last year that would accelerate the progress in a big way … I want to see Congress pass this bill right away and get it to my desk.”
The America Competes Act of 2022 would invest substantially in the domestic production of goods currently rife with Uyghur forced labor within the current supply chain and manufacturing.
Xinjiang produces about 45% of the world’s polysilicon supply, a key component of solar panels. China is also a top producer of semiconductor chips found in cell phones, cars, gaming hardware, appliances and more worldwide. This bill will subsidize the production of both goods right here in the United States, where they will be guaranteed to be Uyghur forced labor free.
The U.S. must curb its dependence on these imports by promoting this production locally. Urge your Member of Congress to support this legislation today.