Rep. Sherrill Shines Light on CCP’s Genocide in Xinjiang, TikTok Surveillance, Urges U.S. Businesses to Ensure Removal of Uyghur Forced Labor from Global Supply Chains

Washington, DC– Representative Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) highlighted the horrific human rights abuses committed by the Chinese Communist Party in Xinjiang and the complicity of Chinese tech firms in the surveillance of the Uyghur people and urged U.S. businesses to invest in global supply chains that are free of Uyghur forced labor. During the second hearing of the Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party (SCC), the Congresswoman spoke about how the genocide committed against Uyghurs in Xinjiang requires a united condemnation from the Federal Government and the business community. 

Watch Representative Sherrill’s remarks here. 

Two women who experienced and escaped CCP re-education camps provided first-hand testimony during the hearing, giving harrowing details of the atrocities. Congresswoman Sherrill thanked the witnesses and implored the world to not look away from the human rights abuses being carried out by a the Chinese Government. 

“Thank you for your truly moving testimony. To hear about the unique vulnerability of women being exploited by the genocide taking place in China right now, it’s truly heartbreaking. I have two teenagers, and to hear that 17 and 18-year-olds are being exploited in the same way at these camps is horrifying so thank you for your testimony,”  Rep. Sherrill said at the hearing.

Chinese tech giants including ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, have worked closely with the CCP to censor and surveil Uyghurs. However, when CEO Shou Zi Chew was asked about this during an Energy and Commerce Committee hearing, he proved evasive and repeatedly insisted that he does not take orders from his platform’s parent company or party officials. 

“We heard tonight some testimony about the Chinese TikTok company and how they’ve participated in the surveillance architecture of the State and have been complicit in the genocide taking place against the Uyghurs. However, at a hearing earlier today when TikTok CEO Chew was asked about this, he said, quote, ‘I’m here to discuss TikTok and what we do as a platform.’ It seems a more complete answer would have included what TikTok does as a platform to help architect the surveillance state that has been involved in these atrocities,” Rep. Sherrill continued. 

During the hearing, Congresswoman Sherrill also highlighted the importance of the United States continuing to identify and penalize companies utilizing Uyghur forced labor. 

“The CCP not only breaks the rules of international trade and diplomacy but is engaged in genocide against the Uyghur people, subjecting them to forced sterilization, brutal re-education, and surveillance while also using their forced labor to prop up export markets and undercut global trade competition,” Rep. Sherrill said at the hearing. “I think it’s clear to all of us that the U.S. must change the way we do business in China. In a competition against a global power using cutthroat tactics, including forced labor and widespread human rights violations, American businesses must help break down a repressive system that can close your factory and steal your intellectual property at will.” 

Congresswoman Sherrill questioned the witnesses about how the US Government and the global community can increase transparency and accountability regarding how certain products are made in China and particularly Xinjiang. Nearly half of the world’s polysilicon, a material required for manufacturing solar cells, was produced in Xinjiang in 2020. The region also produced 85 percent of Chinese cotton, one-fifth of the world’s total supply. 

“Even with the strong legislative mandate of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act and our existing Tariff Act, products made with Uyghur slavery are still coming to the U.S. Eliminating goods produced with forced labor is creating a supply chain crisis… we need to fully implement it [the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act]. We also need to look into closing loopholes within China. We have received news about human trafficking, transporting Uyghur workers to inland China, and changing of labels of the country of origin. Technology should be able to address that,” said Mr. Turkel, founder of the Uyghur Human Rights Project and Chair of the International Religious Freedom Commission.

Mr. Turkel added about the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, “Here’s the good news. This is not a lost cause… We are seeing some progress. Just today in the news, more than 50% of 900 American companies being surveyed in Beijing said they are not in favor of investing in China. So that’s good news.”

“The key is to impose a cost for evil-doing,” said Dr. Adrian Zenz, Senior Fellow, and Director of China Studies at the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation.

Since 2014, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has forcibly detained more than 1 million Uyghurs in concentration camps in Xinjiang. The Chinese Government subjects Uyghurs to mass forced sterilizations to suppress the population, separates children from their families, and attempts to break and destroy the cultural traditions of the ethnic group. 

Earlier this year, Congresswoman Sherrill was asked to join the SCC and will focus on investigating and developing policy that promotes human rights across the globe and addresses our country’s economic, technological, and security competition with the CCP.