Senate supports bill on ban against goods made with forced labour

The Senate has voted to support a bill aimed to send a blunt message to China over its widespread use of Uighur forced labour.

Independent senator Rex Patrick said the purpose of the bill was to ban the import of goods produced in whole or part by forced labour or slavery. 

"The use of forced labour within global production chains has emerged as a major humanitarian concern," Senator Patrick said.

He said human rights abuse against Uighur people has highlighted the issue of slavery in China. 

"We need to send a very clear political signal to Beijing and to the numerous international brands that have been happy to turn a blind eye to China's massive exploitation of forced labour," he said. 

Senator Patrick estimated the global figure of slaves was between 38 to 46 million. 

The Senate stands tall on eliminating slave labour! However the Government’s refusal to support the legislation is absolutely unconscionable. There is no excuse for not supporting a measure that directly attacks those who seek to profit from enslaving fellow human beings. #auspol pic.twitter.com/VbCWUjOytY

â€" Rex Patrick (@Senator_Patrick) August 23, 2021

Senator Patrick said there was undeniable evidence hundreds of thousands of Uighur people in China's Xinjiang province have been subjected to forced labour.

"International action against modern slavery is building," he told the Senate on Monday.

Human rights groups, Uighur organisations and unions had called on the Senate to pass the proposed measures and implement additional powers for the Australian Border Force to ensure the legislation can be enforced. 

"The industrial scale at which Uyghurs are being held in internment and labour camps means immediate action on this issue is needed," Ramila Chanisheff, President of the Australian Uyghur Tangritagh Womens’ Association said.

"We do not have a single member that has not been personally affected by the gross human rights violations on family or friends in East Turkistan, also known as Xinjiang.

Senior lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre, Freya Dinshaw, said Australia's imports regime needs to put the onus on importers. 

"Most Australians would be horrified to know there is nothing in place to stop goods made with forced labour in places like Xinjiang ending up on Australian shelves," she said. 

In July, the United States Senate passed legislation with a similar intent.

The Uighur Forced Labour Prevention Act created a "rebuttable presumption" assuming goods manufactured in Xinjiang are made with forced labour and therefore banned under the 1930 Tariff Act, unless otherwise certified by US authorities.

The bipartisan measure shifted the burden of proof to importers.

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