NEWS

New Findings Reveal NHS Links to Uyghur Forced Labour
On December 27, an article by The Guardian revealed that the suppliers of the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) are at “high risk” of using Uyghur forced labour. This information was uncovered through research conducted by the Department of Health and Social Care pertaining to NHS suppliers. Throughout the investigation process, the U.K. Government employed its own Modern Slavery Assessment Tool (MSAT) to calculate the risk rate, reviewing over 1300 suppliers. Additionally, the top five products identified as having the highest risk of involvement were surgical instruments, gloves, gowns, uniforms and face masks. 

Sian Lea from Anti-Slavery International stated that the U.K. government’s decision to eliminate any connection to Uyghur forced labour from the healthcare sector is only the initial step in a broader journey, and urged authorities to enhance the standards across all public sector supply chains. 

Customers Risk Purchasing Items Produced by Uyghur Forced Labour
On December 21, the BBC published an article highlighting the potential risks for Temu customers in purchasing items manufactured through the use of Uyghur forced labour. Temu, a Chinese online retailer with 9 million customers in the U.K. is known for its notably low prices compared to other marketplaces. Concerns have been raised about the high likelihood of Uyghur forced labour being involved in the production of these low-cost items. According to Alicia Kearns, the U.K. head of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, Temu was asked to disclose its supply chain. “When you look into where Temu gets its goods from, where in China it is producing them, you can see that these are areas where we know that there is the use of forced Uyghur slave labour,” said Ms Kearns.

China Sanctions U.S. Research Company
On December 26, Mao Ning, spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry, announced the decision to ban a U.S. data firm along with two analysts for their reporting on the Chinese government’s human rights violations and its connection to Uyghur forced labour within its supply chains. The affected entities include the Los Angeles based research company, Kharon, its director of investigations, Edmund Xu, and Nicole Morget from the Center for Advanced Defense Studies. They are now prohibited from entering China and all their assets will be frozen. The ban comes in the wake of a series of sanctions imposed by the U.S. government in response to allegations of Uyghur forced labour in East Turkistan.

The Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP) said that Beijing’s latest move “is part of a longer pattern of attempts to deter investigations and silence critical voices and activists working to uncover human rights abuses in China.”

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Ask Volkswagen to Close its Plant in East Turkistan
Despite growing evidence of the ongoing genocide against the Uyghurs, Volkswagen continues to operate in East Turkistan. The World Uyghur Congress is collecting signatures to demand Volkswagen to close down its plant in Urumqi. Please sign here!

Support Uyghurs’ Genocide & Crimes Against Humanity Case in Argentina
The World Uyghur Congress and the Uyghur Human Rights Project have launched a criminal case in the courts of Argentina in relation to the international crimes of genocide and crimes against humanity being committed against the Uyghur people. Please donate and be a part of this historic case.