美国“新疆棉花禁令”为何站不住脚丨Officials slam sanctions on Xinjiang products（微信文章未删减版）

The United States' sanctions on the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps in the name of "forced labor" are groundless and won't affect the healthy development of the corps, officials said.

"More than 70 percent of the XPCC's cotton and 95 percent of its textile products have been sold domestically in the past two years," Sun Huantao, deputy director of the XPCC's Commerce Bureau, told China Daily in an exclusive interview at its headquarters in Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

"We don't have much direct trade volume with the US. The US' latest sanctions on cotton and cotton products produced by the XPCC indeed have affected our businesses, but they have only had a limited impact," Sun said.

Photo by Wang Zhuangfei/China Daily

The XPCC, also known as Bingtuan, is a special provincial-level entity entrusted by the State to cultivate and guard China's border areas in Xinjiang. It has administrative control of several cities as well as farms and industrial facilities.

On Dec 2, US Customs and Border Protection issued a withhold release, or detention, order that applies to all cotton and cotton products produced by the XPCC and its subordinate and affiliated entities, along with all products made in whole or in part from XPCC cotton, such as apparel, garments and textiles, because of concerns about "the risks of forced labor", the agency said.

In the days leading up to the withhold release order, Customs and Border Protection sent detailed questionnaires to US importers of apparel to obtain information on supply chains in Xinjiang.

"The sanctions have affected the exports of cotton and cotton products from the XPCC," Sun said. "It means that many foreign businesses will be unable to use good-quality cotton from the XPCC.

"Global businesses and consumers, particularly those in the US, are the real victims of the sanctions. It's a move of extreme trade protectionism and not in line with principles of a market-oriented economy. It will surely damage the international supply chain," Sun added.

To cope with the sanctions, the XPCC will further explore the domestic market, which is strong enough to support the healthy development of the corps' cotton industry, she said.

Han Yongjiang, a spokesman for the XPCC's Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, said all workers' rights are fully protected in accordance with the law, and not a single complaint about forced labor has been received in recent years.

About 46 percent of employees in the corps' textile and apparel enterprises in 2020 are from ethnic minorities such as Uygurs.

It also employees many seasonal workers in the agricultural sector.

These seasonal workers can make an average of 6,000 yuan ($915) in two months, which is very competitive in Xinjiang, Han said, and such employment is at the free will of employers and workers.

"We have stepped up the inspections to ensure any action that violates the rights of employees of the XPCC is punished in a timely manner. Also, employees from all ethnic groups can complain about possible misconduct via multiple channels, such as online, social media and by phone," he added.

"If we don't treat our employees with a better attitude or pay them well, they will quit. Their absence will severely affect the enterprises' operations. So accusing the XPCC of using forced labor doesn't stand, either factually or logically."

记者：崔佳毛卫华

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