UN Report on Uighur Forced Labour Presents Opportunity & Need for Missing Genocide Report
August 17th, 2022
Justice For All Canada upholds a recent UN report confirming that Uighur, Kazak, Kyrgyz, and other Turkic Muslims in East Turkestan (Xinjiang) are used involuntarily in China’s ongoing state-sponsored forced labour scheme. The report also serves as an opportunity for Canada Trade to improve its dismal import provisions allowing forced labour goods to enter Canadian borders.
Released by the UN Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, the forced labour report mentions the leading types of slavery in East Turkestan;
However, these findings now call into question the status of the UN’s major genocide report, which is yet to emerge from the UN High Commissioner.
The Canadian government is a founding member of the UN. In light of the report’s findings, Canada’s foreign affairs and UN representatives must urge the UN’s Genocide Prevention office to immediately assess and respond to the treatment of Uighur Muslim treatment under China’s communist policies.
“Now more than ever, a response from the Canadian government becomes critical following the UN’s assertion that Chinese government actions amount to enslavement, which is a crime against humanity,” explained Taha Ghayyur, Executive Director. “This is grounds for an investigation into the Uighur genocide.”
Canada’s Inaction Over Forced Labour Imports
An advisory released by Global Affairs Canada in 2021 did little to curb imports tainted with Uighur forced labour. For example, Canada’s border agents only intercepted one shipment to date, compared to over 1,400 by US agents in the same period.
The UN forced labour report offers a building block to prevent Canada from benefitting from this corrupt practice. Canadian officials must act now to implement strong measures, including, but not limited to:
The timing of the UN’s report is critical, serving to pressure China on the forced Uighur labour question. This report arrives shortly after China ratified two International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions against forced labour;
Inaction Following UN Investigative Visit to Xinjiang
Human rights activists are still frustrated over the long-awaited situational report on the genocide that has not yet been delivered by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet.
The forced labour findings indeed serve an essential purpose, highlighting China’s slave labour program functioning under the guise of “poverty alleviation” policies. However, it’s only one facet of the current genocide.
Canadian activists await the full report confirming Bachelet’s witness testimony of the Chinese government’s crimes against humanity and genocidal campaign against Uighur Muslims.
While Canada and its allies have recognized China’s mass Uighur detainment and crimes against humanity as genocide, UN member states have failed to pressure Beijing to address this ongoing human rights crisis.
Justice For All Canada urges the UN to release the full version of Bachelet’s missing report on East Turkestan. Through this report, UN member states will be more inclined to take meaningful actions to stop the Uighur genocide.
Justice For All Canada upholds a recent UN report confirming that Uighur, Kazak, Kyrgyz, and other Turkic Muslims in East Turkestan (Xinjiang) are used involuntarily in China’s ongoing state-sponsored forced labour scheme. The report also serves as an opportunity for Canada Trade to improve its dismal import provisions allowing forced labour goods to enter Canadian borders.
Released by the UN Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, the forced labour report mentions the leading types of slavery in East Turkestan;
- Chattel slavery
- Forced and bonded labour
- Domestic servitude
- Sexual slavery
- Child and forced marriage
- Child labour
However, these findings now call into question the status of the UN’s major genocide report, which is yet to emerge from the UN High Commissioner.
The Canadian government is a founding member of the UN. In light of the report’s findings, Canada’s foreign affairs and UN representatives must urge the UN’s Genocide Prevention office to immediately assess and respond to the treatment of Uighur Muslim treatment under China’s communist policies.
“Now more than ever, a response from the Canadian government becomes critical following the UN’s assertion that Chinese government actions amount to enslavement, which is a crime against humanity,” explained Taha Ghayyur, Executive Director. “This is grounds for an investigation into the Uighur genocide.”
Canada’s Inaction Over Forced Labour Imports
An advisory released by Global Affairs Canada in 2021 did little to curb imports tainted with Uighur forced labour. For example, Canada’s border agents only intercepted one shipment to date, compared to over 1,400 by US agents in the same period.
The UN forced labour report offers a building block to prevent Canada from benefitting from this corrupt practice. Canadian officials must act now to implement strong measures, including, but not limited to:
- Effective enforcement with the detention of forced labour goods by Canadian border agents, instead of relying on the volunteer corporate due diligence.
- Establish a remedy-centric mechanism and incorporate the proposed bills. Only tabled Bill C-262 instills the most emphasis on addressing the remedy-centric mechanism.
- Targeted scope to adequately address the state-sponsored Uyghur forced labour in the Uyghur region and the bill should also allow for banning imports from a particular region. As of yet, only Bill S-204 is addressing the targeted scope.
- Burden of proof should be on the importer to prove the relevant products have not been tainted or transported with Uyghur forced labour.
- Creating transparency and supply chain mapping.
The timing of the UN’s report is critical, serving to pressure China on the forced Uighur labour question. This report arrives shortly after China ratified two International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions against forced labour;
Inaction Following UN Investigative Visit to Xinjiang
Human rights activists are still frustrated over the long-awaited situational report on the genocide that has not yet been delivered by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet.
The forced labour findings indeed serve an essential purpose, highlighting China’s slave labour program functioning under the guise of “poverty alleviation” policies. However, it’s only one facet of the current genocide.
Canadian activists await the full report confirming Bachelet’s witness testimony of the Chinese government’s crimes against humanity and genocidal campaign against Uighur Muslims.
While Canada and its allies have recognized China’s mass Uighur detainment and crimes against humanity as genocide, UN member states have failed to pressure Beijing to address this ongoing human rights crisis.
Justice For All Canada urges the UN to release the full version of Bachelet’s missing report on East Turkestan. Through this report, UN member states will be more inclined to take meaningful actions to stop the Uighur genocide.