EU aims to ban imports made with forced labour, move targeted towards China

According to a draught set of regulations seen by Reuters and driven by EU parliamentarians worried about the state of human rights in the Chinese province of Xinjiang, products created using forced labour or those imported into the 27-nation European Union will be prohibited.

However, due in part to legislative limitations, the European Commission's proposed guidelines are less comprehensive than those put out by EU legislators.

Before the regulations can become law, the EU executive, which will present its plan on Tuesday, must negotiate the specifics with legislators and EU member states.

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"Such prohibition should apply to products for which forced labour has been used at any stage of their production, manufacture, harvest and extraction, including working or processing related to the products," the document said.

"The prohibition should apply to all products, of any type, including their components, and should apply to products regardless of the sector, the origin, whether they are domestic or imported, or placed or made available on the Union market or exported."

Because the hazards of forced labour are more widespread and the impact is expected to be greater, the laws are aimed at major economic actors like importers, manufacturers, producers, and product suppliers, according to the study.

However, it is the responsibility of the national authorities to substantiate any claims that the products were produced or processed using forced labour, and initial inquiries must be completed within 30 working days.

The products can then be removed from the market or blocked from circulation by customs authorities.

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The public will have access to a database that tracks the danger of forced labour in particular geographic regions or with regard to particular goods produced through forced labour that has been mandated by the government.

The Uyghur Forced Labour Prevention Act (UFLPA), which was passed by the US government last year, was created to protect the American market from goods that might have been tainted by human rights violations in Xinjiang, where the US government claims China is committing genocide against Uyghur Muslims.

China, a major cotton grower that also provides the majority of the world's solar panel components, disputes that there have been abuses in Xinjiang and claims that the law "slanders" the country's human rights record.

(with inputs from agencies)