China Is Once Again a World Leader in Human Trafficking

The State Department has released its annual report on human trafficking and identified China as one of 13 countries with a pattern of human trafficking.

“China’s genocide of ethnic and religious minorities in Xinjiang is a human trafficking nightmare under which hundreds of thousands of innocent people are arbitrarily imprisoned and forced into labor camps. Last year, China made billions of dollars off of these heinous acts. That’s why American companies must do more to comply with the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act and make sure their supply chains are not using products made with forced labor,” said Select Committee on China Chairman John Moolenaar (R-MI).

The report, released on Monday, says “3.9 million individuals are exploited by state-imposed forced labor in China and several other countries. These forms of exploitation generate an estimated $236 billion in illegal proceeds annually and, through complex supply chains, can connect legitimate companies and unknowing consumers to this human rights abuse.”

The report continues, “governments have shifted from imposing detention center labor to creating so-called economic development or communal service opportunities and then requiring workers to participate in them. China has developed 'poverty alleviation' programs in the Xinjiang region in an attempt to compel the labor of Uyghurs and other persecuted groups.”

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