EU Parliament passes law banning products made with forced labour

The European Parliament approved a new law on Tuesday to ban in the EU the sale, import and export of goods made using forced labour, targeting China’s use of forced labor in Xinjiang, RFA reported.

The Forced Labour Regulation places the burden of proof on the EU, allowing authorities to investigate and confiscate goods made with forced labor, the source added.

It highlighted that manufacturers of banned goods must withdraw their products from the EU market, and non-compliant companies can be fined.

Uyghur advocates welcomed the measure, but noted that it does not specifically ban products made by Uyghur forced labor.

China denies abuses in Xinjiang, a major cotton producer that also supplies much of the world’s materials for solar panels.