{"id":4712,"date":"2021-02-18T08:45:33","date_gmt":"2021-02-18T13:45:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/?p=4712"},"modified":"2022-07-07T15:08:01","modified_gmt":"2022-07-07T19:08:01","slug":"cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/","title":{"rendered":"CBP Issues WRO on Cotton, Tomato, &#038; Downstream Products Made in Xinjiang"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The United States has been increasing its efforts to combat <a href=\"https:\/\/xmr.d2e.myftpupload.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/U.S.-Customs-Targets-Use-of-Forced-Labor.pdf\">forced labor<\/a> around the world. During the Trump Administration\u2019s final weeks, the United States not only <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/newsroom\/national-media-release\/cbp-issues-region-wide-withhold-release-order-products-made-slave\"><strong>banned the importation of Chinese Cotton, Tomatoes, among other products<\/strong><\/a>, but also explicitly recognized the situation in Xinjiang as a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/01\/19\/us\/politics\/trump-china-xinjiang.html\"><strong>Genocide<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Importers not adequately auditing their supply chains for use of forced labor are at risk of administrative and criminal enforcement. Imported merchandise produced with forced labor is subject to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) enforcement. Such enforcement includes U.S. Customs and Border Protection&#8217;s (CBP) right to detain, exclude, and\/or seize imported goods and Homeland Security Investigation&#8217;s potential criminal investigation. China is not only the United States\u2019 number one trading partner but also happens to be the world\u2019s biggest forced labor violator.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><strong>Background<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In May 2014, China initiated the campaign\u00a0 \u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/en.people.cn\/90785\/8515157.html\">Strike Hard against Violent Extremism<\/a>\u201d, claiming to combat the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/ccpabuses#background\">\u201cthree evils\u201d of \u201cethnic separatism, religious extremism, and violent terrorism.\u201d<\/a> The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) used this justification to impose restrictions on members of the ethnic minority communities of the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region. These efforts dramatically increased in August 2016, when Communist Party Secretary <a href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/on-sanctioning-human-rights-abusers-in-xinjiang-china\/\">Chen Quanguo<\/a><u>,<\/u> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scmp.com\/news\/china\/politics\/article\/3003047\/architect-chinas-muslim-camps-chen-quanguo-expected-stay\">known as the architect of China\u2019s Muslim camps,<\/a> assumed leadership of Xinjiang. According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/report\/2018\/09\/09\/eradicating-ideological-viruses\/chinas-campaign-repression-against-xinjiangs\">Human Rights Watch<\/a>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Xinjiang authorities conduct a compulsory mass collection of biometric data, such as voice samples and DNA, and use artificial intelligence and big data to identify, profile, and track everyone in Xinjiang. The authorities have envisioned these systems as a series of \u201cfilters,\u201d picking out people with certain behavior or characteristics that they believe indicate a threat to the Communist Party\u2019s rule in Xinjiang.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This dystopian system has progressed into the rapid establishment of \u201cre-education\u201d camps. In these camps, guards <a href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/world\/asia\/china-muslims-xinjiang-pork-alcohol-lunar-new-year-spring-festival-uighur-islam-a8767561.html\">force the Muslim detainees to break Halal<\/a>, mandating they drink alcohol, and only serving pork at meals. China reportedly takes <u>DNA samples from Uighur camp prisoners and uses them as human test subjects <\/u>in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/world\/asia\/china-xinjiang-uighur-muslim-detention-camps-xi-jinping-persecution-a9165896.html\">gang rapes and medical experiments<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Since 2014, the situation in Xinjiang, China has progressed from the simple collecting of Biometric data from a subsect of the population, to full-blown extrajudicial internment, re-education camps, forced sterilization, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/zakdoffman\/2019\/11\/16\/china-covers-up-killing-of-prisoners-to-harvest-organs-for-transplant-new-report\/?sh=212696752ec7\">organ harvesting<\/a>. According to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/article-3027088\/A-Human-Harvest-Chinas-organ-trafficking-exposed-shocking-documentary-alleges-illegal-trade-worth-staggering-1-billion-year.html\">2015 report<\/a>, China\u2019s illegal organ transplant industry is valued at over $1 billion each year. The labor from these camps is the life-blood of the campaign. The interred individuals are essentially paying for their treatment in that they generate revenue that the government subsequently pumps back into the system of abuse.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/victimsofcommunism.org\/leader\/adrian-zenz-phd\/\"><strong>Dr. Adrian Zenz<\/strong><\/a><strong>, <\/strong>a Senior Fellow in China Studies at the <a href=\"https:\/\/victimsofcommunism.org\/\">Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation<\/a> in Washington has authored various books regarding China\u2019s policies towards ethnic minorities, and has played a leading role in the analysis of leaked Chinese government documents, including the \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.icij.org\/investigations\/china-cables\/read-the-china-cables-documents\/\">China Cables<\/a>\u201d and the \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.jpolrisk.com\/karakax\/\">Karakax List<\/a>.\u201d Dr. Zenz has been integral in enlightening the world on the situation in China. In a recent Washington International Trade Association (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wita.org\/\">WITA<\/a>) webinar regarding the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wita.org\/event-videos\/wita-webinar-forced-labor-in-xinjiang\/\">scope and scale of forced labor in Xinjiang<\/a>, Dr. Zenz stated that the current crisis is worse than anything we have witnessed since the Holocaust. According to Dr. Zenz, whereas the Nazis sent Jews to concentration camps and death camps; the Chinese send Uighurs to concentration camps, re-education camps, or demoralization camps, instead. Despite the differences, the systematic nature and end goal of the Chinese government\u2019s policy towards the Uighurs is emblematic of the Nazi\u2019s policy towards the Jew\u2019s: forced assimilation and or eradication of the culture and prevention of its proliferation.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201c[T]he Chinese government has placed vast numbers of Turkic minorities into internment camps, which it refers to as \u201creeducation camps,\u201d&#8230; it claimed that these supposed students would gradually be released into work placements. Data such as this supports this claim, but not in the way that the government is trying to sell it. Rather, it is part of a rapidly growing set of evidence for how Beijing\u2019s long-term strategy to subdue its northwestern minorities is predicated upon a perverse and intrusive combination of coercive labor, intergenerational separation, and complete social control.\u201d Dr. Zenz, <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2019\/12\/11\/cotton-china-uighur-labor-xinjiang-new-slavery\/\">Xinjiang\u2019s New Slavery<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Dr. Zenz explicitly stated that while the Chinese are not (yet) committing mass extermination, the abuses against its Uighur population definitively constitutes a genocide. From religious oppression, to forced sterilization, to internment, to forced labor or slavery, to re-education &#8212; the CCP has been deliberate in its attempt to eliminate the Uighur ethnicity. Dr. Zenz articulated that the Chinese are engaging in a slow-rolling genocide, also known as an \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.americanbar.org\/groups\/human_rights\/dignity-rights-initiative\/ethnocide-project\/what-is-ethnocide-\/\">ethnocide<\/a>\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the overwhelming evidence supporting claims of systematic abuses such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/ccpabuses\">coercive population control through forced abortion, forced sterilization, and involuntary implantation of birth control;<\/a>\u00a0 Chinese officials <a href=\"https:\/\/asia.nikkei.com\/Politics\/China-People-s-Congress\/Xinjiang-denies-existence-of-Uighur-detention-camps-in-China\">continue to defend<\/a> the supposedly legitimate purpose of these camps.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Combating Chinese Concentration Camps &#8211; <\/em><\/strong><strong>Forced labor Angle <\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In its<a href=\"https:\/\/www.govinfo.gov\/content\/pkg\/CHRG-116hhrg36743\/html\/CHRG-116hhrg36743.htm\"> 2019 Annual Report<\/a>, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China found that products reportedly produced with forced labor by current and former mass internment camp detainees included textiles, electronics, food products, shoes, tea, and handicrafts.<\/p>\n<p>Since the publication of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/report\/2018\/09\/09\/eradicating-ideological-viruses\/chinas-campaign-repression-against-xinjiangs\">September 2018 Human Rights Watch report,<\/a> news of these concentration camps started garnering international recognition. Congress began introducing bills, like the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/116th-congress\/senate-bill\/178\/text?format=txt\"><strong>UIGHUR Act of 2019<\/strong><\/a>, which aimed at addressing the \u201chuman rights violations and abuses, including gross violations of human rights, by the People&#8217;s Republic of China&#8217;s mass surveillance and internment of [Millions of] Uighurs and other predominantly Turkic Muslim ethnic minorities in China&#8217;s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region.\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>These efforts increased when President Trump signed the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/116th-congress\/senate-bill\/3744\"><strong>Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020<\/strong><\/a> into law on June 17, 2020. Under the UHRA, the President may impose property-blocking or visa-blocking sanctions on the identified foreign individuals and entities responsible for human rights abuses in China&#8217;s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. The UHRPA also requires the Executive branch to periodically report to Congress a list identifying foreign individuals and entities responsible for such human rights abuses. Furthermore, although it has not yet been signed into law, bills such as the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.govinfo.gov\/content\/pkg\/BILLS-116s3471is\/pdf\/BILLS-116s3471is.pdf\">Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act<\/a>, which was introduced on March 12, 2020, signify that Congress understands the gravity of the situation. Some of the key findings included in the Bill are as follows:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>There is a very high risk that <strong>many factories<\/strong> and other suppliers in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region are exploiting forced labor, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.govinfo.gov\/content\/pkg\/BILLS-116s3471is\/pdf\/BILLS-116s3471is.pdf\">reports from researchers, media, and civil society groups<\/a>. Audits to vet products and supply chains in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region are <em>not<\/em> possible because of the extent to which forced labor has contaminated the regional economy, the mixing of involuntary labor with voluntary labor, the inability of witnesses to speak freely about working conditions given heavy government surveillance and coercion, and the strong incentive of government officials to conceal government-sponsored forced labor<strong>.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>In its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/2019-Trafficking-in-Persons-Report.pdf\">June 2019 Trafficking in Persons Report, the Department of State<\/a> found, <strong><em>Authorities offer subsidies incentivizing Chinese companies to open factories in close proximity to the internment camps<\/em><\/strong>, and local governments receive additional funds for each inmate forced to work in these sites at a fraction of minimum wage or without any compensation.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.govinfo.gov\/content\/pkg\/BILLS-116s3471is\/pdf\/BILLS-116s3471is.pdf\">According to<\/a> public reports, companies that are or have been suspected of directly employing forced labor or sourcing from suppliers that are suspected of using forced labor include (<em>among others<\/em>):\n<ul>\n<li>Adidas,<\/li>\n<li>Calvin Klein,<\/li>\n<li>the Campbell Soup Company,<\/li>\n<li>the Coca-Cola Company,<\/li>\n<li>Costco,<\/li>\n<li>Esprit,<\/li>\n<li>H&amp;M,<\/li>\n<li>the Kraft Heinz Company,<\/li>\n<li>Nike, Inc.,<\/li>\n<li>Patagonia, Inc.,<\/li>\n<li>Tommy Hilfiger.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Whether out of ignorance or neglect, American and European dollars have helped facilitate the use of forced labor, if not slavery; which pursuant to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.govinfo.gov\/app\/details\/USCODE-2011-title19\/USCODE-2011-title19-chap4-subtitleII-partI-sec1307\">19 U.S.C. 1307<\/a> is prohibited.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Active Measures<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In line with sanctioning individuals and entities is the strategic use of <a href=\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-seizes-800k-of-human-hair-from-china-alleging-forced-labor\/\">Withhold Release Orders (WROs)<\/a><u>. <\/u>A WRO directs CBP Officers at all ports of entry to withhold release of goods originating from a listed company or country. \u00a0These targeted sanctions have been especially effective at identifying certain nations, industries, and companies that employ forced labor in any way. CBP provides the public with a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/trade\/programs-administration\/forced-labor\/withhold-release-orders-and-findings\">list of all WROs <\/a>and the findings of the investigations. Right now, the majority of active WROs are focused on items produced in China. In fact, the majority of WROs the USTR implemented since 2016, are directed at China.\u00a0 Below is a list of each WRO implemented against China since 2016:<\/p>\n<table width=\"575\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\"><strong>#<\/strong><\/td>\n<td width=\"96\"><strong>Date:<\/strong><\/td>\n<td width=\"336\"><strong>Merchandise; Manufacturer:<\/strong><\/td>\n<td width=\"92\"><strong>Country:<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">1<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">3\/29\/2016<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Soda Ash, Calcium Chloride, and Caustic Soda; Tangshan Sanyou Group and its Subsidiaries<\/p>\n<p>[Partially Active]<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">2<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">3\/29\/2016<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Potassium, Potassium Hydroxide, Potassium Nitrate; Tangshan Sunfar Silicon Industries<\/p>\n<p>[Revoked on 2\/5\/2018]<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">3<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">5\/20\/2016<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Stevia and its Derivatives; Inner Mongolia Hengzheng Group Baoanzhao Agricultural and Trade LLC<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">4<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">9\/16\/2016<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Peeled Garlic; Hongchang Fruits &amp; Vegetable Products Co., Ltd.<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">5<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">3\/5\/2018<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Toys; Huizhou Mink Industrial CO. LTD.<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">6<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">9\/30\/2019<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">All Garments; Hetian Taida Apparel Co., Ltd.<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">7<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">5\/1\/2020<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Hair Products; Hetian Haolin\u00a0 Hair Accessories Co., Ltd.<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">8<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">6\/17\/2020<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Hair Products; Lop County Meixin Hair Products Co., Ltd<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">9<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">8\/11\/2020<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Garments; Hero Vast Group<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">10<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">8\/25\/2020<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Hair Products; Lop County Hair Product Industrial Park<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">11<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">8\/25\/2020<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Labor; No. 4 Vocation Skills Education Training Center (VSETC)<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">12<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">9\/3\/2020<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Apparel; Yili Zhuowan Garment Manufacturing Co., Ltd. and Baoding LYSZD Trade and Business Co., Ltd.<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">13<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">9\/8\/2020<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Cotton and Processed Cotton; Xinjiang Junggar Cotton and Linen Co., Ltd.<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">14<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">9\/8\/2020<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Computer Parts; Hefei Bitland Information Technology Co., Ltd.<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">15<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">11\/30\/2020<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Xinjiang Production and Construction Corporation (XPCC) and its subordinate and affiliated entities<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"51\">16<\/td>\n<td width=\"96\">01\/13\/2021<\/td>\n<td width=\"336\">Cotton, Tomatoes and Downstream Products of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR)<\/td>\n<td width=\"92\">China<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>Following the imposition of a WRO on hair products originating from the<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/newsroom\/national-media-release\/cbp-issues-detention-order-hair-products-manufactured-forced-labor-0\"> Lop County Meixin hair product company<\/a> on June 17, 2020, CBP has implemented additional WROs on other industries in the region. The impositions of WROs against China saw a recent uptick on July 1, 2020 as a result of another <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/newsroom\/national-media-release\/cbp-detains-chinese-shipment-suspected-forced-labor-products-made\">seizure of hair products<\/a> made in China. Following this seizure, CBP issued a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/document\/guidance\/xinjiang-supply-chain-business-advisory\">Xinjiang Supply Chain Business Advisory<\/a>, which highlights that the Federal Government recognizes the harsh repression and illicit practices of the Chinese regime, and cautions US stakeholders\u2013 businesses, individuals, academic institutions, research service providers, and investors \u2013 that continue to operate business with entities in Xinjiang.<\/p>\n<p>Specifically, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/document\/guidance\/xinjiang-supply-chain-business-advisory\">advisory states<\/a> that these companies<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>should be aware of <strong>reputational<\/strong>, <strong>economic<\/strong>, and, in certain instances, <strong>legal<\/strong>, risks associated with certain types of involvement with entities that engage in human rights abuses, which could include <strong>Withhold<\/strong> <strong>Release<\/strong> <strong>Orders<\/strong> (<strong>WROs<\/strong>), <strong>civil<\/strong> or <strong>criminal<\/strong> <strong>investigations<\/strong>, and <strong>export<\/strong> <strong>controls<\/strong>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong><em>Xinjiang Cotton Ban<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>During the last week of the Trump Administration, on January 13, 2021, the United states issued a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/newsroom\/national-media-release\/cbp-issues-region-wide-withhold-release-order-products-made-slave\">Region-Wide Withhold Release Order on Products Made by Slave Labor in Xinjiang <\/a>Specifically, CBP imposed a WRO on all Cotton, Tomatoes and Downstream Products originating in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR). CBP issued the WRO after identifying various <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ilo.org\/global\/topics\/forced-labour\/publications\/WCMS_203832\/lang--en\/index.htm\">forced labor indicators<\/a> including debt bondage, restriction of movement, isolation, intimidation and threats, withholding of wages, and abusive living and working conditions.<\/p>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/newsroom\/national-media-release\/cbp-issues-region-wide-withhold-release-order-products-made-slave\">CBP<\/a>, on December 2, 2020, CBP announced the issuance of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/newsroom\/national-media-release\/cbp-issues-detention-order-cotton-products-made-xinjiang-production\">WRO on cotton<\/a> and cotton products originating from the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, an economic and paramilitary organization subordinate to the Chinese Communist Party. The region-wide WRO is the fourth WRO that CBP has issued since the beginning of Fiscal Year 2021, and the second on products originating in Xinjiang. All WROs are publicly available and listed by country on CBP\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/trade\/programs-administration\/forced-labor\/withhold-release-orders-and-findings\">Forced Labor WROs and Findings webpage<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The decision to ban cotton products marks the most substantial action. Out of the estimated three million detained Uighurs, over 500,000 have been forced to work in cotton fields. Moreover, cotton from the Xinjiang region accounts for <a href=\"https:\/\/cgpolicy.org\/briefs\/coercive-labor-in-xinjiang-labor-transfer-and-the-mobilization-of-ethnic-minorities-to-pick-cotton\/\">85% of China\u2019s cotton production, and more than 20% of the world\u2019s cotton.<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Biden on Forced Labor <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The Biden Administration has committed to maintaining a strident approach towards China. On January 20, 2021 upon being sworn in as <a href=\"https:\/\/investigativeresearchcenter.org\/chinese-state-media-huffs-after-pompeo-blinken-agree-on-genocide-declaration\/\">Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken stated<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>On the Uighurs I think we&#8217;re very much in agreement. And the forcing of men, women and children into concentration camps, trying to, in effect, re-educate them to be adherents to the ideology of the Chinese Communist Party, all of that speaks to an effort to commit genocide.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong><em>Practitioner Tips<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>According to CBP, importers must exercise reasonable care and due diligence to ensure that forced labor is not included in any aspect of their supply chain. In order to effectively mitigate their risk, importers must understand the timely and costly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/assets\/documents\/2019-Feb\/Forced_Labor_Process_Map_PBRB.pdf\">detention process<\/a> and know the importance of using CBP\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/assets\/documents\/2018-Mar\/icprescare2017revision.pdf\">reasonable care checklist<\/a> and implementing best practices. Additionally, importers should conduct a robust <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dol.gov\/ilab\/complychain\/\">internal risk assessment<\/a>, and audit their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/trade\/automated\">supply chain and import history<\/a>. Further, importers should be aware of their ability to contest a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/assets\/documents\/2020-Feb\/Forced%20Labor_Detained%20Shipments%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf\">WRO<\/a> or argue for the release of detained shipments.<\/p>\n<p>For more information regarding CBP\u2019s current enforcement environment in targeting and combatting the use of forced labor, as well as top tips on how to avoid forced labor to in your supply chain\u2014 reference our <a href=\"https:\/\/news.bloomberglaw.com\/?target=https%3A%2F%2Fwsauth.bna.com%2Fwsauth%2Fblawauth%3Ftarget%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.bloomberglaw.com%252Fstart%26v%3D0.1076.1\">Bloomberg Law<\/a> article titled &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/xmr.d2e.myftpupload.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/U.S.-Customs-Targets-Use-of-Forced-Labor.pdf\">U.S. Customs Targets Forced Labor<\/a>\u201d co-authored by <a href=\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/meet-the-team\/\">Jennifer Diaz, and Denise Calle of Diaz Trade Law<\/a> with support from Zachary Kaufman.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Conclusion<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>For assistance with importer due diligence in relation to forced labor requirements; or for assistance re-exporting your detained merchandise, in submitting documents to dispute the use of forced labor, or for assistance with the revocation request process, contact our <a href=\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/meet-the-team\/\">Customs and International Law attorneys<\/a> at info@diaztradelaw.com or 305-456-3830.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The United States has been increasing its efforts to combat forced labor around the world. During the Trump Administration\u2019s final weeks, the United States not only banned the importation of Chinese Cotton, Tomatoes, among other products, but also explicitly recognized the situation in Xinjiang as a Genocide. Importers not adequately auditing their supply chains for use of forced labor are at risk of administrative and criminal enforcement. Imported merchandise produced with forced labor is subject to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) enforcement. Such enforcement includes U.S. Customs and Border Protection&#8217;s (CBP) right to detain, exclude, and\/or seize imported goods and Homeland Security Investigation&#8217;s potential criminal investigation. China is not only the United States\u2019 number one trading partner but also happens to be the world\u2019s biggest forced labor violator.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,33,62,100,52,10,751,32,28,72,61,34,89,16],"tags":[177,164,125,123,126,473],"class_list":["post-4712","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-best-practices","category-customs-broker","category-customs-expert","category-enforcement","category-expert","category-export","category-forced-labor","category-import","category-import-alert","category-international-law","category-international-trade","category-international-travel","category-compliance","category-cbp","tag-best-practices","tag-compliance","tag-export","tag-import","tag-international-trade","tag-trade-war"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>CBP Issues WRO on Cotton, Tomato, &amp; Downstream Products Made in Xinjiang - Customs &amp; International Trade Law Firm<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The United States has been increasing its efforts to combat forced labor around the world.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"CBP Issues WRO on Cotton, Tomato, &amp; Downstream Products Made in Xinjiang - Customs &amp; International Trade Law Firm\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The United States has been increasing its efforts to combat forced labor around the world.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Customs &amp; International Trade Law Firm\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/facebook.com\/diaztradelaw\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-02-18T13:45:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-07-07T19:08:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jennifer Diaz\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@diaztradelaw\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@diaztradelaw\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jennifer Diaz\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"10 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Jennifer Diaz\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/#\/schema\/person\/e4358517dcb10b6d836c8962295b4d96\"},\"headline\":\"CBP Issues WRO on Cotton, Tomato, &#038; Downstream Products Made in Xinjiang\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-02-18T13:45:33+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-07-07T19:08:01+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/\"},\"wordCount\":2213,\"commentCount\":0,\"keywords\":[\"Best Practices\",\"compliance\",\"Export\",\"Import\",\"International Trade\",\"trade war\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Best Practices\",\"Customs Broker\",\"Customs Expert\",\"Enforcement\",\"Expert\",\"Export\",\"Forced Labor\",\"Import\",\"Import Alert\",\"International Law\",\"International Trade\",\"International Travel\",\"Pre-compliance\",\"U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/\",\"name\":\"CBP Issues WRO on Cotton, Tomato, & Downstream Products Made in Xinjiang - Customs &amp; International Trade Law Firm\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2021-02-18T13:45:33+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-07-07T19:08:01+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/#\/schema\/person\/e4358517dcb10b6d836c8962295b4d96\"},\"description\":\"The United States has been increasing its efforts to combat forced labor around the world.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"CBP Issues WRO on Cotton, Tomato, &#038; Downstream Products Made in Xinjiang\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/\",\"name\":\"Customs &amp; International Trade Law Firm\",\"description\":\"Jennifer Diaz\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/#\/schema\/person\/e4358517dcb10b6d836c8962295b4d96\",\"name\":\"Jennifer Diaz\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/17abf4ff22025f4b6e7b46bb9ef9b51f6b1439e2a298c3dbf9f90b76d3d4ffef?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/17abf4ff22025f4b6e7b46bb9ef9b51f6b1439e2a298c3dbf9f90b76d3d4ffef?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Jennifer Diaz\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/author\/jen\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"CBP Issues WRO on Cotton, Tomato, & Downstream Products Made in Xinjiang - Customs &amp; International Trade Law Firm","description":"The United States has been increasing its efforts to combat forced labor around the world.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"CBP Issues WRO on Cotton, Tomato, & Downstream Products Made in Xinjiang - Customs &amp; International Trade Law Firm","og_description":"The United States has been increasing its efforts to combat forced labor around the world.","og_url":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/","og_site_name":"Customs &amp; International Trade Law Firm","article_publisher":"http:\/\/facebook.com\/diaztradelaw","article_published_time":"2021-02-18T13:45:33+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-07-07T19:08:01+00:00","author":"Jennifer Diaz","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@diaztradelaw","twitter_site":"@diaztradelaw","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Jennifer Diaz","Est. reading time":"10 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/"},"author":{"name":"Jennifer Diaz","@id":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/#\/schema\/person\/e4358517dcb10b6d836c8962295b4d96"},"headline":"CBP Issues WRO on Cotton, Tomato, &#038; Downstream Products Made in Xinjiang","datePublished":"2021-02-18T13:45:33+00:00","dateModified":"2022-07-07T19:08:01+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/"},"wordCount":2213,"commentCount":0,"keywords":["Best Practices","compliance","Export","Import","International Trade","trade war"],"articleSection":["Best Practices","Customs Broker","Customs Expert","Enforcement","Expert","Export","Forced Labor","Import","Import Alert","International Law","International Trade","International Travel","Pre-compliance","U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/","url":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/","name":"CBP Issues WRO on Cotton, Tomato, & Downstream Products Made in Xinjiang - Customs &amp; International Trade Law Firm","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/#website"},"datePublished":"2021-02-18T13:45:33+00:00","dateModified":"2022-07-07T19:08:01+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/#\/schema\/person\/e4358517dcb10b6d836c8962295b4d96"},"description":"The United States has been increasing its efforts to combat forced labor around the world.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/cbp-issues-wro-on-cotton-tomato-downstream-products-made-in-xinjiang\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"CBP Issues WRO on Cotton, Tomato, &#038; Downstream Products Made in Xinjiang"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/","name":"Customs &amp; International Trade Law Firm","description":"Jennifer Diaz","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/#\/schema\/person\/e4358517dcb10b6d836c8962295b4d96","name":"Jennifer Diaz","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/17abf4ff22025f4b6e7b46bb9ef9b51f6b1439e2a298c3dbf9f90b76d3d4ffef?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/17abf4ff22025f4b6e7b46bb9ef9b51f6b1439e2a298c3dbf9f90b76d3d4ffef?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Jennifer Diaz"},"url":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/author\/jen\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4712","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4712"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4712\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4712"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diaztradelaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}