{"id":38984,"date":"2022-12-24T12:03:48","date_gmt":"2022-12-24T17:03:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/autosector.com\/?p=38984"},"modified":"2022-12-24T12:03:48","modified_gmt":"2022-12-24T17:03:48","slug":"senate-probe-automaker-forced-labor-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/?p=38984","title":{"rendered":"Senate panel probes carmakers\u2019 ties to forced labor in China – Autoblog"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Senate Finance Committee is launching an investigation into whether major automakers such as Ford<\/a> Motor Co., General Motors Co<\/a>. and Tesla<\/a> Inc. are using parts made with forced labor from the Xinjiang region of China<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cUnless due diligence confirms that components are not linked to forced labor, automakers cannot and should not sell cars<\/a> in the United States that include components mined or produced in Xinjiang,\u201d Senator Ron Wyden, the committee\u2019s chair, wrote in letters sent Thursday. \u201cThe United States considers the Chinese government\u2019s brutal oppression of Uyghurs in Xinjiang an \u2018ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

The letters, which were also sent to about half a dozen automakers including GM<\/a>, Ford and Stellantis NV, follows a report from the UK\u2019s Sheffield Hallam University that found links between Chinese companies operating in Xinjiang and the import of parts from automakers that include batteries<\/a>, wiring and wheels, Wyden\u2019s office said.<\/p>\n

Representatives from GM, Ford and Stellantis, which sells cars under the Jeep<\/a> and Ram brands, had no immediate reply to a request for comment.<\/p>\n

The committee\u2019s investigation comes amid increasing scrutiny about companies\u2019 ties to China\u2019s Xinjiang region where the U.S. has accused China of requiring hundreds of thousands of detainees \u2014 mostly Uyghur Muslims or other minorities \u2014 to work against their will. Beijing has denied those allegations.<\/p>\n

Under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, the U.S. government assumes anything made even partially in the Chinese manufacturing hub of Xinjiang is produced with forced labor and can\u2019t be imported into America. Companies can win exemptions if they are able to provide \u201cclear and convincing evidence\u201d the goods are free of force.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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