Sept. 22, 2020 sees Congressional Record publish “UYGHUR FORCED LABOR PREVENTION ACT”

Volume 166, No. 164 covering the 2nd Session of the 116th Congress (2019 - 2020) was published by the Congressional Record.

The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.

“UYGHUR FORCED LABOR PREVENTION ACT” mentioning the U.S. Dept of State was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H4657-H4666 on Sept. 22, 2020.

The State Department is responsibly for international relations with a budget of more than $50 billion. Tenure at the State Dept. is increasingly tenuous and it's seen as an extension of the President's will, ambitions and flaws.

The publication is reproduced in full below:

UYGHUR FORCED LABOR PREVENTION ACT

Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6210) ensuring that goods made with forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China do not enter the United States market, and for other purposes, as amended.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows:

H.R. 6210

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:

(1) In the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China, the Government of the People's Republic of China has, since 2017, arbitrarily detained as many as 1.8 million Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and members of other Muslim minority groups in a system of extrajudicial mass internment camps, and has subjected detainees to forced labor, torture, political indoctrination, and other severe human rights abuses.

(2) Forced labor exists within the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region's system of mass internment camps, and throughout the region, and is confirmed by the testimony of former camp detainees, satellite imagery, and official leaked documents from the Government of the People's Republic of China as part of a targeted campaign of repression of Muslim ethnic minorities.

(3) In addition to reports from researchers and civil society groups documenting evidence that many factories and other suppliers in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region are exploiting forced labor, the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security on July 22, 2020, added eleven entities to the entity list after determining the entities had been ``implicated in human rights violations and abuses in the implementation of China's campaign of repression, mass arbitrary detention, forced labor and high-technology surveillance against Uyghurs, Kazakhs, and other members of Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region''.

(4) Audits and efforts to vet products and supply chains in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region are unreliable due to the extent forced labor has been integrated into the regional economy, the mixing of involuntary labor with voluntary labor, the inability of witnesses to speak freely about working conditions given government surveillance and coercion, and the incentive of government officials to conceal government-sponsored forced labor.

(5) The Department of State's June 2019 Trafficking in Persons Report found that ``Authorities offer subsidies incentivizing Chinese companies to open factories in close proximity to the internment camps, and local governments receive additional funds for each inmate forced to work in these sites at a fraction of minimum wage or without any compensation.''.

(6) U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued eight

``Withhold Release Orders'' on certain garments, hair products, cotton, processed cotton, and computer parts suspected to be produced with prison or forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

(7) In its 2019 Annual Report, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) found that products reportedly produced with forced labor by current and former mass internment camp detainees included textiles, electronics, food products, shoes, tea, and handicrafts.

(8) Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307) states that it is illegal to import into the United States

``goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part'' by forced labor. Such merchandise is subject to exclusion or seizure and may lead to criminal investigation of the importer.

(9) The policies of the Government of the People's Republic of China are in contravention of international human rights instruments signed by that government, including--

(A) the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which the People's Republic of China has signed but not yet ratified;

(B) the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, ratified by the People's Republic of China in 2001; and

(Palermo Protocol), to which the People's Republic of China has been a state party since February 2010.

SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

It is the policy of the United States--

(1) to prohibit the import of all goods, wares, articles, or merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured, wholly or in part, by forced labor from the People's Republic of China and particularly any such goods, wares, articles, or merchandise produced in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China;

(2) to encourage the international community to reduce the import of any goods made with forced labor from the People's Republic of China, particularly those goods mined, manufactured, or produced in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region;

(3) to coordinate with Mexico and Canada to effectively implement Article 23.6 of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement to prohibit the importation of goods produced in whole or in part by forced or compulsory labor, which includes goods produced in whole or in part by forced or compulsory labor in the People's Republic of China;

(4) to actively work to prevent, publicly denounce, and end human trafficking as a horrific assault on human dignity and to restore the lives of those affected by human trafficking, a modern form of slavery;

(5) to regard the prevention of atrocities as in its national interest, including efforts to prevent torture, enforced disappearances, severe deprivation of liberty, including mass internment, arbitrary detention, and widespread and systematic use of forced labor, and persecution targeting any identifiable ethnic or religious group; and

(6) to address gross violations of human rights in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region through bilateral diplomatic channels and multilateral institutions where both the United States and the People's Republic of China are members and with all the authorities available to the United States Government, including visa and financial sanctions, export restrictions, and import controls.

SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON IMPORTATION OF GOODS MADE IN THE

XINJIANG UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION.

(a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), all goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China, or by persons working with the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region government for purposes of the ``poverty alleviation'' program or the ``pairing-assistance'' program which subsidizes the establishment of manufacturing facilities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, shall be deemed to be goods, wares, articles, and merchandise described in section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307) and shall not be entitled to entry at any of the ports of the United States.

(b) Exception.--The prohibition described in subsection (a) shall not apply if the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection--

(1) determines, by clear and convincing evidence, that any specific goods, wares, articles, or merchandise described in subsection (a) were not produced wholly or in part by convict labor, forced labor, or indentured labor under penal sanctions; and

(2) submits to the appropriate congressional committees and makes available to the public a report that contains such determination.

(c) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date that is 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 5. ENFORCEMENT STRATEGY TO ADDRESS FORCED LABOR IN THE

XINJIANG UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION.

(a) In General.--Not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force, established under section 741 of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 4681), shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that contains an enforcement strategy to effectively address forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China. The enforcement strategy shall describe the specific enforcement plans of the United States Government regarding--

(1) goods, wares, articles, and merchandise described in section 4(a) that are imported into the United States directly from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region;

(2) goods, wares, articles, and merchandise described in section 4(a) that are imported into the United States from the People's Republic of China and are mined, produced, or manufactured in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region or by persons working with the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region government for purposes of the ``poverty alleviation'' program or the ``pairing-assistance'' program; and

(3) goods, wares, articles, and merchandise described in section 4(a) that are imported into the United States from third countries and are mined, produced, or manufactured in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region or by persons working with the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region government for purposes of the ``poverty alleviation'' program or the

``pairing-assistance'' program.

(b) Matters To Be Included.--The strategy required by subsection (a) shall include the following:

(1) A description of the actions taken by the United States Government to address forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region under section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930

(19 U.S.C. 1307), including a description of all Withhold Release Orders issued, goods detained, and fines issued.

(2) A list of products made wholly or in part by forced or involuntary labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and a list of businesses that sold products in the United States made wholly or in part by forced or involuntary labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

(3) A list of facilities and entities, including the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, that source material from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region or by persons working with the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region government for purposes of the ``poverty alleviation'' program or the ``pairing-assistance'' program, a plan for identifying additional such facilities and entities, and facility- and entity-specific enforcement plans, including issuing specific Withhold Release Orders to support enforcement of section 4, with regard to each listed facility or entity.

(4) A list of high-priority sectors for enforcement, which shall include cotton and tomatoes, and a sector-specific enforcement plan for each high-priority sector.

(5) A description of the additional resources necessary for U.S. Customs and Border Protection to effectively implement the enforcement strategy.

(6) A plan to coordinate and collaborate with appropriate nongovernmental organizations and private sector entities to discuss the enforcement strategy for products made in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

(c) Form.--The report required by subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex, if necessary.

(d) Updates.--The Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force shall provide briefings to the appropriate congressional committees on a quarterly basis and, as applicable, on any updates to the strategy required by subsection (a) or any additional actions taken to address forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, including actions described in this Act.

(e) Sunset.--This section shall cease to have effect on the earlier of--

(1) the date that is 8 years after the date of the enactment of this Act; or

(2) the date on which the President submits to the appropriate congressional committees a determination that the Government of the People's Republic of China has ended mass internment, forced labor, and any other gross violations of human rights experienced by Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and members of other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

SEC. 6. DETERMINATION RELATING TO CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY OR

GENOCIDE IN THE XINJIANG UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS

REGION.

(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall--

(1) determine if the practice of forced labor or other crimes against Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and members of other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China can be considered systematic and widespread and therefore constitutes crimes against humanity or constitutes genocide as defined in subsection (a) of section 1091 of title 18, United States Code; and

(2) submit to the appropriate congressional committees and make available to the public a report that contains such determination.

(b) Form.--The report required by subsection (a)--

(1) shall be submitted in unclassified form but may include a classified annex, if necessary; and

(2) may be included in the report required by section 7.

SEC. 7. DIPLOMATIC STRATEGY TO ADDRESS FORCED LABOR IN THE

XINJIANG UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION.

(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in coordination with the heads of other appropriate Federal departments and agencies, shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that contains a United States strategy to promote initiatives to enhance international awareness of and to address forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China.

(b) Matters To Be Included.--The strategy required by subsection (a) shall include--

(1) a plan to enhance bilateral and multilateral coordination, including sustained engagement with the governments of United States partners and allies, to end forced labor of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and members of other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region;

(2) public affairs, public diplomacy, and counter-messaging efforts to promote awareness of the human rights situation, including forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region; and

(3) opportunities to coordinate and collaborate with appropriate nongovernmental organizations and private sector entities to raise awareness about forced labor made products from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and to provide assistance to Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and members of other Muslim minority groups, including those formerly detained in mass internment camps in the region.

(1) to the extent practicable, a list of--

(A) entities in the People's Republic of China or affiliates of such entities that directly or indirectly use forced or involuntary labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region; and

(B) Foreign persons that acted as agents of the entities or affiliates of entities described in subparagraph (A) to import goods into the United States; and

(2) a description of actions taken by the United States Government to address forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region under existing authorities, including--

(A) the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-386; 22 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.);

(B) the Ellie Wiesel Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-441; 22 U.S.C. 2656 note); and

(22 U.S.C. 2656 note).

(d) Form.--The report required by subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex, if necessary.

(e) Updates.--The Secretary of State shall include any updates to the strategy required by subsection (a) in the annual Trafficking in Persons report required by section 110(b) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7107(b)).

(f) Sunset.--This section shall cease to have effect the earlier of--

(1) the date that is 8 years after the date of the enactment of this Act; or

SEC. 8. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS RELATING TO FORCED LABOR IN

THE XINJIANG UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION.

(a) Report Required.--

(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and not less frequently than annually thereafter, the President shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that identifies each foreign person, including any official of the Government of the People's Republic of China, that the President determines--

(A) knowingly engages in, is responsible for, or facilitates the forced labor of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and members of other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China; and

(B) knowingly engages in, contributes to, assists, or provides financial, material or technological support for efforts to contravene United States law regarding the importation of forced labor goods from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

(2) Form.--The report required under paragraph (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may contain a classified annex.

(b) Imposition of Sanctions.--The President shall impose the sanctions described in subsection (c) with respect to each foreign person identified in the report required under subsection (a)(1).

(1) Asset blocking.--The President shall exercise all of the powers granted to the President under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to the extent necessary to block and prohibit all transactions in property and interests in property of a foreign person identified in the report required under subsection (a)(1) if such property and interests in property--

(A) are in the United States;

(B) come within the United States; or

(2) Ineligibility for visas, admission, or parole.--

(A) Visas, admission, or parole.--An alien described in subsection (a)(1) is--

(i) inadmissible to the United States;

(ii) ineligible to receive a visa or other documentation to enter the United States; and

(iii) otherwise ineligible to be admitted or paroled into the United States or to receive any other benefit under the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).

(B) Current visas revoked.--

(i) In general.--An alien described in subsection (a)(1) is subject to revocation of any visa or other entry documentation regardless of when the visa or other entry documentation is or was issued.

(ii) Immediate effect.--A revocation under clause (i) shall--

(I) take effect immediately; and

(II) automatically cancel any other valid visa or entry documentation that is in the alien's possession.

(d) Implementation; Penalties.--

(1) Implementation.--The President may exercise all authorities provided under sections 203 and 205 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out this section.

(2) Penalties.--The penalties provided for in subsections

(b) and (c) of section 206 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) shall apply to a foreign person that violates, attempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a violation of paragraph (1) to the same extent that such penalties apply to a person that commits an unlawful act described in subsection (a) of such section 206.

(e) Waiver.--The President may waive the application of sanctions under this section with respect to a foreign person identified in the report required under subsection (a)(1) if the President determines and certifies to the appropriate congressional committees that such a waiver is in the national interest of the United States.

(f) Exceptions.--

(1) Exception for intelligence activities.--Sanctions under this section shall not apply to any activity subject to the reporting requirements under title V of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3091 et seq.) or any authorized intelligence activities of the United States.

(2) Exception to comply with international obligations and for law enforcement activities.--Sanctions under subsection

(c)(2) shall not apply with respect to an alien if admitting or paroling the alien into the United States is necessary--

(A) to permit the United States to comply with the Agreement regarding the Headquarters of the United Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force November 21, 1947, between the United Nations and the United States, or other applicable international obligations; or

(B) to carry out or assist law enforcement activity in the United States.

(g) Termination of Sanctions.--The President may terminate the application of sanctions under this section with respect to a foreign person if the President determines and reports to the appropriate congressional committees not less than 15 days before the termination takes effect that--

(1) information exists that the person did not engage in the activity for which sanctions were imposed;

(2) the person has been prosecuted appropriately for the activity for which sanctions were imposed;

(3) the person has credibly demonstrated a significant change in behavior, has paid an appropriate consequence for the activity for which sanctions were imposed, and has credibly committed to not engage in an activity described in subsection (a)(1) in the future; or

(4) the termination of the sanctions is in the national security interests of the United States.

(h) Sunset.--This section, and any sanctions imposed under this section, shall terminate on the date that is 5 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

(i) Definitions of Admission; Admitted; Alien.--In this section, the terms ``admission'', ``admitted'', and ``alien'' have the meanings given those terms in section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101).

SEC. 9. DISCLOSURES TO THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

OF CERTAIN ACTIVITIES RELATED TO THE XINJIANG

UYGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION.

(a) Policy Statement.--It is the policy of the United States to protect American investors, through stronger disclosure requirements, alerting them to the presence of Chinese and other companies complicit in gross violations of human rights in United States capital markets, including American and foreign companies listed on United States exchanges that enable the mass internment and population surveillance of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and other Muslim minorities and source products made with forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China. Such involvements represent clear, material risks to the share values and corporate reputations of certain of these companies and hence to prospective American investors, particularly given that the United States Government has employed sanctions and export restrictions to target individuals and entities contributing to human rights abuses in the People's Republic of China.

(b) Disclosure of Certain Activities Relating to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.--

(1) In general.--Section 13 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78m) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

``(s) Disclosure of Certain Activities Relating to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.--

``(1) In general.--Each issuer required to file an annual or quarterly report under subsection (a) shall disclose in that report the information required by paragraph (2) if, during the period covered by the report, the issuer or any affiliate of the issuer--

``(A) knowingly engaged in an activity with an entity or the affiliate of an entity engaged in creating or providing technology or other assistance to create mass population surveillance systems in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China, including any entity included on the Department of Commerce's `Entity List' in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region;

``(B) knowingly engaged in an activity with an entity or an affiliate of an entity building and running detention facilities for Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and other members of Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region;

``(C) knowingly engaged in an activity with an entity or an affiliate of an entity described in section 7(c)(1) of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, including--

``(i) any entity engaged in the `pairing-assistance' program which subsidizes the establishment of manufacturing facilities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region; or

``(ii) any entity for which the Department of Homeland Security has issued a `Withhold Release Order' under section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307); or

``(D) knowingly conducted any transaction or had dealings with--

``(i) any person the property and interests in property of which were sanctioned by the Secretary of State for the detention or abuse of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, or other members of Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region;

``(ii) any person the property and interests in property of which are sanctioned pursuant to the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 2656 note); or

``(iii) any person or entity responsible for, or complicit in, committing atrocities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

``(2) Information required.--

``(A) In general.--If an issuer described under paragraph

(1) or an affiliate of the issuer has engaged in any activity described in paragraph (1), the information required by this paragraph is a detailed description of each such activity, including--

``(i) the nature and extent of the activity;

``(ii) the gross revenues and net profits, if any, attributable to the activity; and

``(iii) whether the issuer or the affiliate of the issuer

(as the case may be) intends to continue the activity.

``(B) Exception.--The requirement to disclose information under this paragraph shall not include information on activities of the issuer or any affiliate of the issuer activities relating to--

``(i) the import of manufactured goods, including electronics, food products, textiles, shoes, and teas, that originated in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region; or

``(ii) manufactured goods containing materials that originated or are sourced in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

``(3) Notice of disclosures.--If an issuer reports under paragraph (1) that the issuer or an affiliate of the issuer has knowingly engaged in any activity described in that paragraph, the issuer shall separately file with the Commission, concurrently with the annual or quarterly report under subsection (a), a notice that the disclosure of that activity has been included in that annual or quarterly report that identifies the issuer and contains the information required by paragraph (2).

``(4) Public disclosure of information.--Upon receiving a notice under paragraph (3) that an annual or quarterly report includes a disclosure of an activity described in paragraph

(1), the Commission shall promptly--

``(A) transmit the report to--

``(i) the President;

``(ii) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives; and

``(iii) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; and

``(B) make the information provided in the disclosure and the notice available to the public by posting the information on the Internet website of the Commission.

``(5) Investigations.--Upon receiving a report under paragraph (4) that includes a disclosure of an activity described in paragraph (1), the President shall--

``(A) make a determination with respect to whether any investigation is needed into the possible imposition of sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 2656 note) or section 8 of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act or whether criminal investigations are warranted under statutes intended to hold accountable individuals or entities involved in the importation of goods produced by forced labor, including under section 545, 1589, or 1761 of title 18, United States Code; and

``(B) not later than 180 days after initiating any such investigation, make a determination with respect to whether a sanction should be imposed or criminal investigations initiated with respect to the issuer or the affiliate of the issuer (as the case may be).

``(6) Atrocities defined.--In this subsection, the term

`atrocities' has the meaning given the term in section 6(2) of the Elie Wiesel Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-441; 22 U.S.C. 2656 note).''.

(c) Sunset.--Section 13(s) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as added by subsection (b), is repealed on the earlier of--

(1) the date that is 8 years after the date of the enactment of this Act; or

(d) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (b) shall take effect with respect to reports required to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission after the date that is 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 10. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:

(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term

``appropriate congressional committees'' means--

(A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on Financial Services, and the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives; and

(B) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and the Committee on Finance of the Senate.

(2) Atrocities.--The term ``atrocities'' has the meaning given the term in section 6(2) of the Elie Wiesel Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-441; 22 U.S.C. 2656 note).

(3) Crimes against humanity.--The term ``crimes against humanity'' includes, when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack--

(A) murder;

(B) deportation or forcible transfer of population;

(D) extermination;

(E) enslavement;

(F) rape, sexual slavery, or any other form of sexual violence of comparable severity;

(G) persecution against any identifiable group or collectivity on political, racial, national, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender, or other grounds that are universally recognized as impermissible under international law; and

(H) enforced disappearance of persons.

(4) Forced labor.--The term ``forced labor'' has the meaning given the term in section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307).

(5) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person'' means a person that is not a United States person.

(6) Person.--The term ``person'' means an individual or entity.

(7) Mass population surveillance system.--The term ``mass population surveillance system'' means installation and integration of facial recognition cameras, biometric data collection, cell phone surveillance, and artificial intelligence technology with the ``Sharp Eyes'' and

``Integrated Joint Operations Platform'' or other technologies that are used by Chinese security forces for surveillance and big-data predictive policing.

(8) United states person.--The term ``United States person'' means--

(A) a United States citizen or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence to the United States; or

(B) an entity organized under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction within the United States, including a foreign branch of such an entity.

SEC. 11. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.

The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall be determined by reference to the latest statement titled

``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Castro) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. McCaul) each will control 20 minutes.

The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Castro).

General Leave

Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include in the Record extraneous material on H.R. 6210.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Texas?

There was no objection.

Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. The human rights atrocities the Chinese Government is perpetuating in Xinjiang are now well-known. More than 1 million Uyghur and Muslim ethnic minorities have been thrown in detention camps, where they face torture, brainwashing, sexual abuse, and even forced sterilization.

These atrocities are horrific, and the Congress has acted to hold perpetrators of these crimes accountable by passing the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act. But we must not stop there.

The legislation we are considering today focuses on a specific form of abuse in Xinjiang: forced labor, an abuse of human rights which also has grave implications for supply chains and consumers worldwide. Importing goods made from forced labor violates U.S. law, and Americans certainly would not want to contribute to the PRC Government's human rights abuses by unwittingly purchasing apparel or hair products made by a detained Uyghur.

Among other things, this legislation reaffirms U.S. policy to reduce the number and types of goods made from forced labor, mandates reports surrounding the U.S. Government's strategy to spread awareness of forced labor in Xinjiang and address that challenge, and requires the Secretary of State to determine whether the practice of forced labor in Xinjiang constitutes crimes against humanity or even genocide.

This measure builds on what Congress has already done to hold the Chinese Government accountable and to end the mass detention, repression, and surveillance of minorities in Xinjiang.

I thank Chairman McGovern, Mr. Smith, and other bipartisan champions for their consistent leadership on these issues, and I hope Congress can, as we have before, take a strong stand against Beijing and its crimes.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in support of the bill. This is a good measure. I am pleased to support it, and I am also pleased that it has, I believe, bipartisan support.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

House of Representatives,

Committee on the Judiciary,

Washington, DC, September 17, 2020.Hon. Eliot Engel,Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs,House of Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman Engel: This is to advise you that the Committee on the Judiciary has now had an opportunity to review the provisions in H.R. 6210, the ``Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act,'' that fall within our Rule X jurisdiction. I appreciate your consulting with us on those provisions. The Judiciary Committee has no objection to your including them in the bill for consideration on the House floor, and to expedite that consideration is willing to forgo action on H.R. 6210, with the understanding that we do not thereby waive any future jurisdictional claim over those provisions or their subject matters.

In the event a House-Senate conference on this or similar legislation is convened, the Judiciary Committee reserves the right to request an appropriate number of conferees to address any concerns with these or similar provisions that may arise in conference.

Please place this letter into the Congressional Record during consideration of the measure on the House floor. Thank you for the cooperative spirit in which you have worked regarding this matter and others between our committees.

Sincerely,

Jerrold Nadler,Chairman.

____

House of Representatives,

Committee on Foreign Affairs,

Washington, DC, September 17, 2020.Hon. Jerrold Nadler,Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary,House of Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman Nadler: I am writing to you concerning H.R. 6210, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. I appreciate your willingness to work cooperatively on this legislation.

I acknowledge that provisions of the bill fall within the jurisdiction of the House Committee on the Judiciary under House Rule X, and that your Committee will forgo action on H.R. 6210 to expedite floor consideration. I further acknowledge that the inaction of your Committee with respect to the bill does not waive any future jurisdictional claim over the matters contained in the bill that fall within your jurisdiction. I will also support the appointment of Committee on the Judiciary conferees during any House-Senate conference convened on this legislation.

Lastly, I will ensure that our exchange of letters is included in the Congressional Record during floor consideration of the bill. Thank you again for your cooperation regarding the legislation. I look forward to continuing to work with you as the measure moves through the legislative process.

Sincerely,

Eliot L. Engel,Chairman.

____

Committee on Ways and Means,

House of Representatives,

Washington, DC, September 21, 2020.Hon. Eliot L. Engel,Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs,Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman Engel: In recognition of the desire to expedite consideration of H.R. 6210, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, the Committee on Ways and Means agrees to waive formal consideration of the bill as to provisions that fall within the rule X jurisdiction of the Committee on Ways and Means.

The Committee on Ways and Means takes this action with the mutual understanding that we do not waive any jurisdiction over the subject matter contained in this or similar legislation, and the Committee will be appropriately consulted and involved as the bill or similar legislation moves forward so that we may address any remaining issues within our jurisdiction. The Committee also reserves the right to seek appointment of an appropriate number of conferees to any House-Senate conference involving this or similar legislation.

Finally, I would appreciate your response to this letter confirming this understanding and would ask that a copy of our exchange of letter on this matter be included in the Congressional Record during floor consideration of H.R. 6210.

Sincerely,

Richard E. Neal,Chairman.

____

House of Representatives,

Committee on Foreign Affairs,

Washington, DC, September 21, 2020.Hon. Richard E. Neal,Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means, House of

Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman Neal: I am writing to you concerning H.R. 6210, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. I appreciate your willingness to work cooperatively on this legislation.

I acknowledge that provisions of the bill fall within the jurisdiction of the Committee on Ways and Means under House Rule X, and that your Committee will forgo action on H.R. 6210 to expedite floor consideration. I further acknowledge that the inaction of your Committee with respect to the bill does not waive any future jurisdictional claim over the matters contained in the bill that fall within your jurisdiction. I will also support the appointment of Committee on Ways and Means conferees during any House-Senate conference convened on this legislation.

Sincerely,

Eliot L. Engel,Chairman.

____

House of Representatives,

Committee on Foreign Affairs,

Washington, DC, September 21, 2020.Hon. Maxine Waters,Chairwoman, Committee on Financial Services, House of

Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Chairwoman Waters: I am writing to you concerning H.R. 6210, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. I appreciate your willingness to work cooperatively on this legislation.

I acknowledge that provisions of the bill fall within the jurisdiction of the Committee on Financial Services under House Rule X, and that your Committee will forgo action on H.R. 6210 to expedite floor consideration. I further acknowledge that the inaction of your Committee with respect to the bill does not waive any future jurisdictional claim over the matters contained in the bill that fall within your jurisdiction. I also acknowledge that your Committee will be appropriately consulted and involved as this or similar legislation moves forward, and will support the appointment of Committee on Financial Services conferees during any House-Senate conference convened on this legislation.

Sincerely,

Eliot L. Engel,Chairman.

____

House of Representatives,

Committee on Financial Services,

Washington, DC, September 22, 2020.Hon. Eliot L. Engel,Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs, House of

Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Mr. Chairman: I am writing concerning H.R. 6210, the

``Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.'' In order to permit H.R. 6210 to proceed expeditiously to the House Floor, I agree to forgo formal consideration of the bill.

The Committee on Financial Services takes this action to forego formal consideration of H.R. 6210 in light of the mutually agreed changes to provisions within the jurisdiction of the Committee on Financial Services. We are also doing so based on our mutual understanding that, by foregoing formal consideration of H.R. 6210 at this time, we do not waive any jurisdiction over the subject matter contained in this or similar legislation, and that our Committee will be appropriately consulted and involved as this or similar legislation moves forward with regard to any matters in the Committee's jurisdiction. The Committee also reserves the right to seek appointment of an appropriate number of conferees to any House-Senate conference involving this or similar legislation that involves the Committee's jurisdiction and request your support for any such request.

Finally, I would appreciate your response to this letter confirming this understanding, and I would ask that a copy of our exchange of letters on this matter be included in the Congressional Record during Floor consideration of H.R. 6210.

Sincerely,

Maxine Waters,

Chairman.

Mr. McCAUL. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I want to start this debate with a simple truth that we cannot afford to forget: Truly free trade cannot involve slave labor.

Today, the Chinese Community Party is using the forced labor of the Uyghurs and other minorities to help bankroll its cultural genocide against those very same groups. The repression taking place right now in Xinjiang is breathtaking in its scope and in its brutality.

It involves the detention of 1 to 3 million people in concentration camps, Madam Speaker. It involves surveillance and attempted brainwashing on a massive scale. It involves breaking up families and taking children from their parents. It involves forced sterilization and, Madam Speaker, forced abortions.

This should be a terrifying warning to the world, to China's neighbors, and to the American people that the Chinese Communist Party is fundamentally focused on expanding its power, its control, and its authoritarian style of government. It views things that it does not control, like religion, cultural identity, and the yearning of all people for freedom, as threats that must be destroyed.

Because we have drawn the CCP into our most essential supply chains, it can hold our national security hostage while it uses U.S. consumers to subsidize its atrocities.

As many as one in five cotton garments globally could be tainted with Uyghur slave labor. In July, U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized a 13-ton shipment of human hair--Madam Speaker, human hair--that originated in Xinjiang's forced labor system. We haven't heard about human hair since the Nazis and the concentration camps of the war that my father fought in, World War II.

It is brazen, and it is sickening. We must refuse to be complicit, financially or otherwise, in the CCP's crimes against the Muslim Uyghur.

For that reason, I support this bill before us today.

I must also point out the abuses in this province are not only one small part of the grave and growing threat that the Chinese Communist Party poses to the interests, the values, and the security of the United States. That threat is global and has military, economic, public health, and philosophical aspects.

I know that many on the other side of the aisle share my concerns. I, unfortunately, regret that, during this Congress, the majority has not given the CCP threat even one-tenth of the time they have put into their partisan efforts to bring down this President.

We were told that the China Task Force was going to be bipartisan, Madam Speaker, and at the last minute, the majority pulled out. For the past 4 months, I have served as chairman of the China Task Force. This task force, again, was supposed to be bipartisan because I believe this is not a Republican or Democrat issue.

Confronting the generational threat that the CCP poses should be a bipartisan issue. It is an American issue against the greatest national security threat to the United States of America.

I believe this failure of perspective needs to change. In our work on the China Task Force, we have met with 125 people from both sides of the aisle to gain better insight into our relationship and our foreign policy, as we speak here from the Foreign Affairs Committee, how we need to treat the Chinese Communist Party from a foreign policy standpoint.

This, again, is an American issue, not Republican or Democrat. This report coming out October 1 will include 400 recommendations, including 100 pieces of legislation that have bipartisan support like the bill before us today.

So, Madam Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues to support this legislation. Then, once we get past this election, Madam Speaker, let us come together on both sides and analyze objectively our foreign policy with the Chinese Communist Party and address the bipartisan bills that will be recommended by the task force to address the Chinese Communist Party's malign activities throughout the world.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield 6 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern), who is the author of this important bill and co-chair of the Human Rights Commission and chairman of the Rules Committee.

Mr. McGOVERN. Madam Speaker, I want to thank my friend from Texas

(Mr. Castro) for yielding, but also for his commitment to human rights, not only with regard to the repression that is going on in China, but all around the world.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 6210, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. I am proud to have authored this legislation to address human rights and forced labor abuses against Uyghur and other Muslim groups in China.

There is strong, diverse, bipartisan, and bicameral support for this legislation, including from my colleagues on the Congressional-

Executive Commission on China. Senator Marco Rubio, Representative Chris Smith, and Representative Tom Suozzi all helped draft this legislation. I thank Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her longtime advocacy for human rights in China and for her leadership in getting this bill to the House floor. I thank Chairman Engel, as well as Ranking Member McCaul, Chairman Neal, and Chairwoman Waters for the support of their committees.

The Congressional-Executive Commission on China, of which I serve as the chair, held the first congressional hearing on this topic a year ago, followed up with a groundbreaking staff report, and then held an expert roundtable event on this issue. We found that the evidence of systematic and widespread forced labor in Xinjiang is astounding and irrefutable and includes evidence from camp detainees, satellite imagery of factories being built at internment camps, and public and leaked Chinese Government documents. All the evidence we accumulated led to the introduction of this bipartisan, bicameral legislation in March 2020.

It is time for Congress to act. Over the past several years, we have watched in horror as the Chinese Government first created and then expanded a system of extrajudicial mass internment camps. As many as 1.8 million Uyghurs and members of other predominantly Muslim ethnic minority groups have been arbitrarily detained in the camps and subjected to forced labor, torture, political indoctrination, and other severe human rights abuses.

Reports published during the past year detailed an expansive and systematic policy of forcibly separating ethnic minority children from their families. A Chinese Government policy document stated that nearly half a million schoolchildren were attending boarding schools. The forcible displacement of children is in violation of the Chinese Government's law on the protection of minors and the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Investigations during the past year detailed a policy of forcibly separating ethnic minority children from their families and the use of forced birth control and sterilization, which may be in contravention of the U.N. Convention on Genocide to which it is a party. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum had already determined that crimes against humanity may have been committed.

In July, I joined a bipartisan letter signed by over 75 Members calling on the Trump administration to make an official determination as to whether atrocity crimes, including genocide and crimes against humanity, are being committed. We have yet to hear back from the administration.

It is time for Congress to act. We know forced labor is widespread and systematic, and it exists both within and outside the mass internment camps. These facts are confirmed by the testimony of former camp detainees, satellite imagery, and official leaked documents from the Chinese Government. We know that many U.S., international, and Chinese companies are complicit in the exploitation of forced labor and specific products include textiles, electronics, and food products.

Audits of supply chains are simply not possible because workers cannot speak freely and honestly about working conditions, given heavy surveillance and intimidation.

Current U.S. law states that it is illegal to import into the United States ``goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part'' by forced labor. Unfortunately, products made with forced labor are still making their way into global supply chains and our country.

The Trump administration has taken some actions, including sending out a business advisory and placing withhold release orders on some businesses and entities in China. But these piecemeal actions fall far short of addressing a regional economic system that is built upon a foundation of forced labor and repression.

Further, we should all be disturbed by reports that President Trump gave a green light to President Xi by telling him that building the camps was ``the right thing to do.'' Ending forced labor was not even discussed as part of the ``Phase One'' trade deal.

It is time for Congress to act. The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act prohibits imports from Xinjiang to the U.S. by creating a

``rebuttal presumption'' that all goods produced in the region are made with forced labor unless U.S. Customs and Border Protection certifies by ``clear and convincing evidence'' that goods were not produced with forced labor.

The legislation also authorizes targeted sanctions, requires financial disclosures about involvement in the region, and requires a State Department determination about whether crimes against humanity or genocide are occurring.

For more than 2 years, U.S. and international companies have been aware of forced labor throughout the Xinjiang region. It is long past time for these companies to reassess their supply chains and find alternatives that do not exploit labor and violate human rights.

Their failure to do so has led U.S. consumers to unwittingly purchase goods made with forced labor. That must end.

Effective enforcement would mean that workers and farmers would no longer have to compete against forced labor from Xinjiang. For too long, the world has been silent while Uyghurs and other Muslim groups suffered under severe repression.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.

{time} 1215

Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentleman.

Mr. McGOVERN. Madam Speaker, I believe the lack of any international response for so long allowed the Chinese Government the space to impose this extreme system of repression. But now the world has woken up.

Today, the U.S. House of Representatives is taking the strongest action yet. I am proud to stand in solidarity with the Uyghur people and, indeed, all the people living under the rule of the Chinese Government, in their struggle to live freely, practice their religious beliefs freely, and speak their own languages freely.

Madam Speaker, I look forward to the passage of this legislation, continuing our bipartisan work together to support human rights in China.

Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are advised to not traffic the well.

Mr. McCAUL. Madam Speaker, I commend the gentleman from Massachusetts

(Mr. McGovern), the chairman, for his steadfast support for human rights across the world. The gentleman and the next speaker have been on this issue, really, as visionary leaders, I would say, the two strongest in the House of Representatives representing both sides of the aisle, and I thank him for that.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Human Rights, who has been working on these issues along with Chairman McGovern for decades.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Madam Speaker, I thank my good friend, Mr. McCaul, the ranking member, for his leadership, for his very, very strong and passionate statement today. I thank my good friend and colleague, Mr. McGovern, the chairman of both the China Commission, as well as the Lantos Commission--and I serve as cochair with him on the Lantos Commission and as ranking member on the China Commission. And I am very pleased to be the principal Republican cosponsor of this bill. I see Mr. Suozzi over there, who has been a great leader as well. We have been teaming up for years on this issue, and I thank him for his leadership as well. And Eliot Engel, our chairman, for his work on this as well.

Madam Speaker, at a 2018 Congressional hearing I cochaired, Mihrigul Tursun recounted her ordeal of torture, sexual abuse, and detention in one of China's mass internment camps in Xinjiang. She broke down weeping, telling us that she pleaded with God to end her life. Her Chinese jailers restrained her to a table, actually increased the electrical currents coursing through her body, and mocked her belief in God. She was tortured simply for being an ethnic Uyghur and a Muslim in China.

Madam Speaker, there are millions of stories like this waiting to be told. Nightmarish accounts of President Xi Jinping's genocide. And make no mistake about it, this is Xi Jinping's genocide. I point out to my colleagues that this includes the mass internment of millions. An estimated 1.8 million victims in concentration camps, children ripped from the warm embrace of their families, to be indoctrinated in Communist ideology and forced to renounce their religion, their culture, and their language.

Rape and sexual abuse of women being held in internment camps, forced abortion and involuntary sterilization to prevent the birth of Uyghur children, a direct violation of Article II(d) of the U.N. Genocide Convention, which states, in part, that genocide includes imposing measures intended to prevent births within a group. Forced labor on a massive scale that allows Chinese companies to profit, and profit big time, from modern-day slavery.

Chinese authorities initially denied the existence of mass internment camps and tried to portray them as vocational training. The Chinese Communist Party employed the big lie, censorship and economic coercion to stifle any discussion of their crimes. However, documents obtained by the New York Times and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists have exposed beyond any reasonable doubt the brutality behind Beijing's plans to radically and coercively transform the culture and religion of ethnic Uyghurs, Kazakhs, and other Muslims in China.

The leaked papers showed detailed plans--this is back years ago now--

of looking to intern between 1 and 3 million Uyghurs in these concentration camps and imposing Orwellian indoctrination efforts for those ``whose thinking has been infected.'' In other words, if you are a Muslim, your thinking is infected.

At the same time, Beijing instituted plans to erase the influence of Islam in all of western China--bulldozing mosques and shrines, severely restricting religious practice, and forcing detainees in the camps to renounce their faith.

The leaked documents also show that Xi Jinping himself directed the crackdown, saying the Communist Party must put the ``organs of dictatorship'' to work and show ``absolutely no mercy'' in dealing with the Uyghurs and other Muslims.

In one speech, President Xi said: ``The weapons of the people's democratic dictatorship, must be wielded without any hesitation or wavering.''

In 2017, February, the documents show he told thousands of police officers and troops standing at attention in the vast square in Urumqi to prepare for a ``smashing, obliterating offensive.'' Secret teams even went out--because some of the cops didn't want to do this--and they expunged them from their ranks.

Madam Speaker, we know that goods produced with forced labor find their way into U.S. markets. An estimated 22 percent of U.S. cotton goods come from the region, and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency has prohibited companies from importing some textiles, electronics, and hair products. As my good friend from Texas pointed out about the hair, the last time we talked about the buying and selling of hair was with the Nazi concentration camps. It is happening today in Xinjiang.

Over the past year, the Trump administration has matched strong rhetoric condemning abuses and actions to protect U.S. national security and punish Chinese authorities and corporations complicit in these human rights abuses.

Since last October, the Commerce Department has placed over 40 Chinese companies and government entities on its Entity List, restricting exports because of their complicity in human rights abuses and enabling high-tech surveillance.

In July, the Treasury Department issued Global Magnitsky sanctions against six senior Chinese officials; however, we want more. There are other people that are complicit. They need to be on the list.

Treasury has also sanctioned the Xinjiang Production Construction Corps, a paramilitary that reports directly to the CCP. This summer, U.S. Customs and Border Protection banned eight other Chinese companies from importing textiles, hair, and electronic parts from Xinjiang. We welcome these steps, but more needs to be done.

The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act prohibits imports from Xinjiang to the U.S. by creating a ``rebuttable presumption.'' And that is the core of this bill, that all goods produced in the region are made with forced labor unless U.S. Customs and Border Protection certifies by clear and convincing evidence that goods were not produced with forced labor. So the rebuttable presumption is the key to this legislation.

It also carries other provisions, important ones, but, again, that is the most important one.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.

Mr. McCAUL. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Madam Speaker, the legislation also authorizes targeted sanctions on any person responsible for labor tracking; protects U.S. investors and consumers by requiring financial disclosure from U.S. traded businesses about their engagement with Chinese companies and other entities engaged in serious human rights abuses; directs the Secretary of State to determine whether forced labor or other crimes against Uyghurs constitute crimes against humanity or genocide. I think it couldn't be clear. Read the Genocide Convention. One item after the other articulated in that convention is being met, sadly, by Xi Jinping's horrible genocide against his own people.

Madam Speaker, I urge support for the bill. It is a bipartisan bill--

67 cosponsors in all. Republicans and Democrats joined saying, ``we want this stopped.''

Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Suozzi).

Mr. SUOZZI. Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Castro for yielding. I thank Mr. Smith for his great work on this, and Chairman Blumenauer for the work of the Committee of Ways and Means. And I thank Chairman McGovern as well.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of this bipartisan Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. We really need to wake people out of their torpor. It has been reported in the newspapers often, but I don't think most Americans realize exactly what is going on in China.

It was almost 50 years ago when Nixon first went to China. And we always believed, as Americans, that the more they are exposed to our way of life, our democracy, our economic system, the more they would become like us. That simply has not happened.

We have had hearings on the China Commission. We had a hearing the other day of the Committee on Ways and Means, and the witnesses testified not only about forced labor, which is clear, but they talked about crimes against humanity. They talked about forced sterilization. They talked about forcing people to eat pork, even though it violates their religion. They talked about prohibiting people from practicing their faith, attending religious ceremonies, observing fasts.

It is hard to imagine that in today's world that forced labor is happening and we know about it. We need to recognize that China has to be held accountable. We have rules in place now that say you can't use forced labor, but this bill is going a big step further in saying everything that comes out of the Xinjiang region will be presumed to be using forced labor. This is going to have a big impact. A lot of the cotton in the world comes from China; 84 percent of that cotton from China comes from the Xinjiang region. This will have an impact. We will have to support other countries to produce cotton. We will have to work to get the Northern Triangle, for example, to produce cotton so we can try and address those issues where our friends are. But we need to hold China and the Chinese Communist Party accountable for these violative acts of our very conscience. We have to do everything we can do to stand up for our values and to say this is simply unacceptable.

Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues for their support.

Mr. McCAUL. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Yoho), the ranking member of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific.

Mr. YOHO. Madam Speaker, I thank the chairman and the leaders on the Democrat side.

Since 2017, the CCP has systemically targeted and rounded up over a million people comprised of Uyghurs and other East Turkic minorities and put them in concentration camps where they were subject to inhumane living conditions, forced cultural brainwashing, rape, and torture.

Just this week, the CCP released a white paper regarding its detention of Uyghurs. They admitted to incarcerating up to 1.3 million Uyghurs per year from 2014 to 2019. That is up to 8 million innocent people in prison, brainwashed, tortured, raped, in their so-called reeducation, which are really concentration camps. If they will admit to that, how many more are there really that have been interned?

The Chinese State is not only complicit but responsible for activity supporting the genocidal campaign targeting vulnerable populations based on everything from religious beliefs, their language, their hairstyle and even their diet. This is not even to mention the horrific practices of forced sterilization and ``marriages'' to Han Chinese men.

Many of these people have now been forced into manufacturing jobs under harsh conditions, which we have heard--Mr. Smith and Chairman McCaul have pointed out--these products benefitting from forced labor have found their ways into our supply chains through major brands and corporations as it becomes increasingly difficult for companies to conduct due diligence investigations in China.

Further, we must recognize that the Chinese diplomatic presence globally is also engaged in this effort. A wealth of evidence is available to suggest that Chinese embassies and consulates around the world are actively seeking to force Chinese Uyghurs to return to mainland China, often to renew their passports, only to be abducted immediately and sent to one of the camps.

As Members of Congress, we have a moral obligation to ensure that the state-sponsored campaign of ethnic cleansing and forced labor--

reminiscent of the concentration camps of the Nazi regime, when we swore as a world community, ``never again''--are shut down and punished to the full extent of U.S. and international law.

The business community of America also has a moral obligation, from manufacturing to Hollywood, to not appease China in the name of profit.

Madam Speaker, as an original cosponsor of this bill, I support its passage in the House and encourage its timely consideration in the Senate.

Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), our distinguished Speaker of the House.

Ms. PELOSI. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Castro) for yielding, and for bringing this important legislation to the floor and giving us a chance to honor our values in the most bipartisan way.

One of the saddest things of all of this is how many people are suffering. One of the joys of it is that it has enabled us to work together over the years.

Madam Speaker, I would ask the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) how many years--at least, 30, working together on this subject.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act and the Uyghur Forced Labor Disclosure Act, two strong bipartisan bills to send a strong message to Beijing and to the world that the U.S. Congress will not allow human rights to be sacrificed for commercial interest.

As I have said many times, if America does not speak out for human rights in China because of commercial interest, we lose all moral authority to speak out about human rights anywhere in the world.

{time} 1230

I salute Chairman Jim McGovern, chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China and chair of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, a leading voice in the country and in the Congress for human rights.

I thank Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton, one of our new freshmen, for her early leadership and dedication she has brought to this priority.

I thank, also, Mr. Smith, and I acknowledge our working together over the years. He is now the ranking member of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China and co-chair of the Lantos Commission.

I salute our chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Mr. Engel, and our leaders in the Senate, Senator Rubio and Senator Merkley.

I thank our chairman, again, for this opportunity and so many of our Members who have spoken on this issue.

Beijing's barbarous actions targeting the Uyghur people continue to be an outrage to the collective conscience of the world. Across the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, the Uyghur people and other Muslim majorities are brutally repressed in a pervasive state of mass surveillance and predictive policing used to discriminate against and violate the human rights of minorities: incidents of mass shootings, extrajudicial killings, intimidation and suppression of journalists courageously exposing the truth, and the mass incarceration of more than--and this is a lower figure; I think it is higher, but it is a conservative figure--1 million innocent people with beatings, solitary confinement, deprivation of food and medical treatment, and extensively documented programs of forced labor.

So if you are out there watching the Congress, know what this means to you. The exploitation of people in China has a direct impact on our trade policy and on our values, first and foremost.

Tragically, the products of the forced labor often end up here in American stores and homes. In fact, roughly one in five cotton garments sold globally contains cotton or yarn from the Xinjiang region, the Uyghur region.

We must shine a light on the inhumane practice of forced labor, hold the perpetrators accountable, and stop this exploitation. And we must send a clear message to Beijing: These abuses must end now.

I remember years ago when Mr. Smith and Frank Wolf visited forced labor--I don't know if you call them prisons or whatever--in China. Their courage to go there was so overwhelming to the rest of us. They were able to document what we needed to know.

Unfortunately, the challenge to the conscience that they brought to us was not heeded by all here. We could overwhelmingly win in the House and even in the Senate but not be able to override a veto, whether it was a Democrat or a Republican in the White House.

But I remember how brave they were and how brave those prisoners were to show them the evidence of the forced labor so we could make the case to workers in America: You have been subjected to the exploitation of workers there; that is an exploitation of workers here.

Again, we were proud, in May, to pass the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act, which uncovers the truth of China's abuses and ensures that those supporting labor camps, and urges the application of targeted sanctions against those involved in the oppression of the Uyghur people.

Today, we build on that overwhelmingly bipartisan legislation with these two bills which, together, will ensure that goods made in the Xinjiang region and imported to the United States are not made with forced labor.

Congress must and will continue to speak out against Beijing's other human rights abuses, like the decades-long abuse faced by the Tibetan people--the Chinese are there to crush their culture, eliminate their language, and suppress their religion; their assault on the honor of His Holiness the Dalai Lama by saying they will choose his successor goes beyond the pale and it is a challenge to the conscience of the world--the Hong Kong fight for democracy and the rule of law, which they oppress; and the jailing of journalists, human rights lawyers, Christians, and democracy advocates on the mainland.

That is why the House is proud to have passed legislation, including the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, the Hong Kong Autonomy Act, and the Tibet Policy and Support Act, which we urge the Senate to take up immediately. All of this was passed in an overwhelmingly bipartisan way because we respect the dignity and worth of every person.

We have always said that we cannot look the other way when this oppression of millions of people is taking place, and we are acting upon those values and those beliefs that we have.

In honor of the millions fighting for their dignity, safety, and rights in China and around the world, I urge a strong bipartisan vote for the Uyghur Forced Labor Protection Act and the Uyghur Forced Labor Disclosure Act.

Madam Speaker, I thank, again, Mr. McCaul, ranking member on the committee of jurisdiction, and everyone for their support.

Mr. McCAUL. Madam Speaker, let me thank Speaker Pelosi. She actually came to our committee markup of this bill. It is very rare for a Speaker of the House to show up to a committee markup, and yet this issue is so important to her that she honored us with her presence in that markup. This is where we come together in the Congress, and I want to thank you for your support, Madam Speaker.

And I thank Mr. Smith, who has been dealing for decades with this.

I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Jacobs).

Mr. JACOBS. Madam Speaker, I want to first acknowledge an individual from my district, Dr. Sean Roberts.

I grew up with Sean Roberts in Buffalo, New York. Sean is a professor now at George Washington University. He has studied the Uyghur people for over 30 years and recently released a book, entitled, ``The War on the Uyghurs: China's Internal Campaign Against a Muslim Minority.'' It is a book that has a depth of research about the atrocities against these people for a long, long time, and I want to commend him for his leadership.

Madam Speaker, long before China endangered the global community with their lies and failures in response to the coronavirus, we knew of the threats they posed, but many ignored them. We can no longer allow them a free pass. Today, we are here to condemn yet another of China's Communist regime's crimes, the atrocious record on human rights, specifically, the persecution and forced labor of the Uyghur people.

The actions of the Chinese Communist regime are appalling, a threat to freedom everywhere, and must be condemned in unwavering terms. It is our duty as the strongest beacon of freedom in the world to shine a light upon these atrocities, sanction those who condone it, and eradicate such evil.

Freedom is not based on just the ideals you hold; rather, it is based on your ability to hold those ideals without fear. I urge every one of my colleagues to support these measures and send a resolute and strong message to the Chinese Communist Party that we will not tolerate their human rights violations.

No more should they be able to act as a rogue nation, a bully, and a manipulator that disregards their own citizens' lives and puts the entire global community in danger. Until China changes its ways, ends the torture of the Uyghur people, and acts as a responsible global citizen, we will not weaken our pressure. With one voice, let's condemn the atrocities committed against the Uyghur people.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.

Mr. McCAUL. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Jacobs).

Mr. JACOBS. Madam Speaker, let's work towards ending our foreign dependence on the Communist regime and hold them accountable for the lives of every individual their lies have killed.

I look forward to working with the Senate to refine and improve this bill and endorse the strong measures it will take to hold the Chinese regime accountable.

Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Cicilline), a valued member of the Foreign Affairs Committee.

Mr. CICILLINE. Madam Speaker, I am proud to cosponsor the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, legislation that bans products of forced labor by Uyghurs to the United States.

I want to acknowledge and thank Chairman McGovern, Chairman Blumenauer, Ranking Member McCaul, Mr. Smith, and others who have led this effort.

As members of the Foreign Affairs Committee, we work every day to ensure that America stands up for freedom around the world, and we take action to promote freedom in human rights around the globe. So, in that vein, we must ensure that the exploitation of the Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities does not continue.

Most Americans would be shocked to learn that, for years, Uyghurs have been interned, tortured, interrogated, and brutally forced into labor by the Chinese Government, and then products they manufacture make their way into the U.S. market. This bill will stop these practices.

We must pass this legislation to crack down on China's abhorrent human rights practices. We must continue to be a force for democratic values and human rights in our own country and around the world.

This is an example of working together in a bipartisan way to make it clear that the United States of America will not remain silent while these gross human rights violations continue, and we will do all that we can to bring the attention of the world to the important practices of the Chinese Communist Government by passing these two pieces of legislation.

Mr. McCAUL. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer).

Mr. BLUMENAUER. Madam Speaker, last week our subcommittee held a hearing on the Chinese Government's use of forced labor for the production of all kinds of goods through a concerted program of oppression and coerced assimilation of China's Uyghur population.

You have heard the horrible details that we had expressed in our committee. We have had a long history of grappling with the depravity of forced labor and ensuring that goods produced under such conditions do not eventually make their way into our grocery stores and shopping malls across the country.

We passed a law a century ago prohibiting importation of such goods. But, unfortunately, the ban--founded on principles of morality, human rights, worker rights, as well principles of fair competition--has, to be charitable, a history of spotty implementation.

We don't pretend that it is going to be easy to stop this. Global supply chains now are complex and interrelated. It is going to require the concerted efforts of us all. But we should not allow complex supply chains to justify the chains of oppression on the Uyghur populations now.

I look forward to working with my colleagues in the aftermath of the passage of this legislation, that we work to actually implement it, we work with the expressions that have been positive from the private sector and NGOs, and other partners, to make sure that it is real. It is going to require concerted effort. It is going to require some dislocation. We may even pay a dime or two more for a pair of socks or a T-shirt.

But I do think not being complicit with this horrific oppression of over a million--and I agree with Mr. Smith, it may well be more than that. It is time for us to make sure that we take a stand. Make it real.

I deeply appreciate the sentiment on both sides of the aisle that we are committed to stop it now. In an era of, shall we say, a little conflict, this could be a bright spot for us going forward.

Mr. McCAUL. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, in recent years, the world has stood by idly as the Chinese Communist Party rounded up more than a million--probably a lot more than that--ethnic minorities into concentration camps where they are tortured, brainwashed, and forced into labor. This is all part of a deliberate program by the CCP to wipe out their ethnic identity, their religion, their culture, anything that might compete with the Communist Party for their loyalties and affection.

We have a moral duty today to speak out against these horrifying crimes against humanity and against the Uyghurs and, as the Speaker mentioned, against the Tibetans and Christians as well, who are persecuted in the Chinese Communist regime.

But we have an even greater duty to avoid funding this genocide by paying for slave labor in Xinjiang. There can no longer be business as usual with China.

Madam Speaker, the world is watching. I urge my colleagues to vote

``yes.''

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

{time} 1245

Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume for the purposes of closing.

Madam Speaker, this is a matter of whether the United States, as it has for generations, will remain a north star around the world when it comes to things like freedom, human rights, democracy, and rooting out corruption.

This is an issue of human rights. Millions of people are being subjugated right now by the Chinese Government. And despite international contamination, atrocities continue in Xinjiang, and China shows no signs of changing course, including recently releasing a white paper defending these ``vocational training centers.''

The United States should use its unique position in the global trading system to advance workers' rights and the freedom and dignity of all people, and to signal other like-minded countries to act accordingly.

I am very pleased to support this measure. I am glad that it has strong bipartisan support, and I urge all the Members to do the same.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Castro) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 6210, as amended.

The question was taken.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.

Mr. CASTRO of Texas. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3 of House Resolution 965, the yeas and nays are ordered.

Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on this motion are postponed.

____________________

SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 166, No. 164

Sept. 22, 2020 sees Congressional Record publish “UYGHUR FORCED LABOR PREVENTION ACT”

Sept. 22, 2020 sees Congressional Record publish “UYGHUR FORCED LABOR PREVENTION ACT”

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