Discussion questions #3

Company Making Costco Pajamas Flagged for Forced

Labor Alonso, Luis; Wang, Yanan; Kang, Dake; Jeantet, Diane.The Epoch Times, New York ed.; New

York (NY) [New York (NY)]09 Oct 2019: A6.

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The Trump administration is blocking shipments from a Chinese company that makes baby pajamas

sold at Costco warehouses, after the foreign manufacturer was accused of forcing ethnic minorities

locked in an internment camp to sew clothes against their will.

The U.S. government is also blocking rubber gloves sold by industry leader Ansell, whose customers

include surgeons, mechanics, and scientists around the United States, accusing a Malaysian

manufacturer of staffing its factories with migrants from Bangladesh, Nepal, and other countries who

went into crushing debt from paying exorbitant recruitment fees.

Imports of bone charcoal from Brazil that firms such as Plymouth Technology and ResinTech Inc.

use to remove contaminants in U.S. water systems, diamonds from Zimbabwe, and gold from the

Democratic Republic of Congo were stopped as well.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Oct. 1 slapped rare detention orders on goods

imported from an unprecedented five countries in one day, based on allegations that people

producing those items might be children, or adults subjected to forced labor. The orders are used to

hold shipping containers at U.S. ports of entry until the agency can investigate the claims of

wrongdoing.

CBP didn't release information about the companies that were importing the goods covered by last

week's detention orders. But The Associated Press tracked items to several buyers, including

Costco and the U.S. subsidiary of Ansell, an Australian maker of industrial and medical gloves. The

companies said they weren't aware that the products were being made with forced labor.

Acting CBP Commissioner Mark Morgan said the orders, the most issued in a single day, "shows

that if we suspect a product is made using forced labor, we'll take that product offU.S. shelves."

The Customs action is sending ripples globally, with exporters now on notice to improve labor

conditions. Domestically, some U.S. importers were shaken to learn their products might have been

made by people forced to work against their will or under threat of punishment. Human rights experts

warn as many as 25 million people globally are victims of forced labor.

In recent years, investigations by media organizations and advocacy groups have tracked products

suspected of being made by forced labor as they travel from manufacturers, through brokers and

dealers, into the hands of U.S. consumers.

"CBP's announcement is significant because of the unprecedented number of actions and for the

message that it sends across corporate supply chains," labor advocates at Humanattorney ity United

and Freedom Fund said in a joint statement. "We know that myriad imported goods U.S. consumers

enjoy every day-from clothing to electronics to chocolate, fruits and vegetables, and other foods-are

likely tainted by forced labor in their supply chains. Making real progress to change this will require a

concerted effort across and outside of government, including through strong enforcement of existing

laws like this."

Until recently, the detentions orders used to block the shipments on Oct. 1 would have been almost

impossible.

Before 2016, the TariffAct-which gave CBP the authority to seize shipments where forced labor was

suspected and block further imports-had been used only 39 times over its first 85 years, largely

because of two words: "consumptive demand"-meaning if there was not sufficient supply to meet

domestic demand, imports were allowed regardless of how they were produced.

After an AP investigation found that seafood caught by slaves in Southeast Asia was ending up in

restaurants and markets around the United States with impunity because of the loophole, Congress

and President Barack Obama changed the law. Since then, under both the Obama and Trump

administrations, CBP has used its detention authority 12 times to stop shipments, including those

recently.

Under the law, U.S. importers have 90 days to prove no forced labor was used to produce their

products. If they can't, they can either ship their products to another country or surrender them to

Customs.

Costco Pajamas

One major case from last week involves China's Hetian Taida Apparel, which AP reported in 2018

was forcing Uyghur Muslims and other ethnic minorities to sew clothes for U.S. importers inside a

Chinese reeducation camp.

This was one of a growing number of internment camps in China's farwestern Xinjiang region,

where, by some estimates, 1 million Muslims are politically indoctrinated while detained and forced

to give up their language and their religion. The Washington-based Worker Rights Consortium

published further evidence this year that Hetian Taida was doing business both inside a camp, and

at nearby state-subsidized factories, where detainees are sent once they are released.

In response, Hetian Taida's U.S. buyer Badger Sportswear, in Statesville, North Carolina, cut

offimports and Hetian Taida stopped exporting to the United States, according to records published

by ImportGenius, which tracks shipping activity around the world.

But in September, Costco Wholesale Corp. began importing baby pajamas made by the company.

On Sept. 21, and again on Sept. 26, Hetian Taida sent shipping containers filled with 100 percent

polyester blanket sleepers for babies and toddlers to the United States, labeled for Costco,

according to shipping records.

In an interview with AP, Costco officials said "we believe (the baby sleepers) were made in a factory

other than the one that was the subject of the CBP detention order. As the facts develop, we're

prepared to consider what action we should take relative to the issue of a supplier to our supplier

owning factories that may have problems."

As of last weekend, the microfleece, zippered pajamas, sold under the label Absorba, were seen by

an AP reporter on some Costco shelves in packs of two, for $14.99.

Scott Nova, executive director of Worker Rights Consortium, said he was shocked that Costco

agreed to do business with a firm already associated with China's re-education camps.

"The Chinese government has created a human rights nightmare for the Uyghur people and Hetian

Taida has been an active partner in Beijing's brutality. The company's use of forced labor is

welldocumented and CBP is right to act," Nova said.

Reached by phone on Oct. 7, Hetian Taida Chairman Wu Hongbo told the AP that the company will

cooperate with U.S. Customs and provide the agency with any documents it needs. Wu declined to

answer further questions and said he has chosen to reject all media interview requests.

Associated Press reporters Luis Alonso, Yanan Wang, Dake Kang, and Diane Jeantet contributed to

this report.

Sidebar

CBP's announcement is significant because of the unprecedented number of actions and for the

message that it sends across corporate supply chains.

Labor advocates, Humanity United and Freedom Fund

Word count: 1080

Copyright The Epoch Times Oct 9, 2019