According to The New York Times, hundreds of Uighurs work in a mining conglomerate that produces raw materials for electric vehicles as part of a so-called work transfer program in China.
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A Chinese company that manufactures raw materials for batteries for electric vehicles The New York Times.
The newspaper reported that the non-ferrous metal industry in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region of the mining conglomerate employs hundreds of Uighurs, a minority ethnic group in China, as part of a so-called job transfer program.
The Times reported that China has admitted that it is running a program to move Uighurs and other ethnic minorities from the south to the north of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to engage in industrial work.
The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
The U.S. Department of State previously quoted an independent researcher as a transfer worker Exposed to forced labor..It also has Previously cited Chinese scholarly publications “Labor mobility was said to be an important means of fragmenting Uighur society and mitigating the” negative “effects of religion.”
In a social media post translated by the Times, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region talks about how mainly Muslim minority workers “eradicate religious extremism” and become “accepting Chinese nationality” workers. Said it was done.
Chinese officials have repeatedly denied the country imprison or enslave Uighurs.On Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said The allegation of forced labor in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is “a huge lie made by anti-Chinese troops to injure China.” He said the rights of workers in all ethnic groups in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region are properly protected.
The non-ferrous metal industry in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region produces minerals and metals such as lithium, nickel and copper. According to The Times, it exports metals to the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, Japan and India. It’s unclear if these relationships are ongoing, but the New York Times reports.
The report was published the night before Uighur Forced Labor Prevention Law Effective in the United States. The law prohibits compulsory labor-made goods from entering the US market in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
The Times reported that thousands of companies could have some connection with the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in their supply chain. If fully enforced, many products, including those needed for electric vehicles, could be shut down at the border.
Read the entire report At the New York Times.
