Grijalva and Huffman letter to Customs and Border Protection

Letter

Dear Commissioner Miller:

Recent New Yorker stories reporting the prevalence of Uyghur and other forced labor in the harvest
and processing of seafood in China expose horrific working conditions and extensive forced labor
across nearly every facet of China's seafood supply chain. Alarmingly, this same seafood is finding
its way into U.S. markets, which is unacceptable. Therefore, we urge you to use the full authority
granted under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) and Section 307 of the Tariff
Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307) to investigate these reports and fully enforce violations of these
Acts.

Under the UFLPA, it is illegal to import any goods, wares, articles, or merchandise mined,
produced, or manufactured in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic
of China. In addition, under Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930, it is illegal to import into the
United States any good derived, wholly or in part, from forced labor. Recent reporting clearly
demonstrates that Uyghurs and other Muslim ethnic minorities in China are being forced to work
throughout China's seafood industry.

The reports also highlight that Uyghur workers are being forced from their homes to facilities
thousands of miles from Xinjiang under the Chinese government's Uyghur transfer program.1
According to one article, since 2018, the Chinese government forcefully transferred at least 1,000
Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities from Xinjiang to work in ten large seafood companies in
Shandong.2 Five of the companies have exported over 47,000 tons of seafood to the United States
since then, including 17% of all squid imported into the United States.3,4

In addition, we are also deeply concerned with evidence suggesting North Korean labor use in
seafood plants in northeastern China.5 According to the articles, three Chinese seafood-processing
companies known to employ North Koreans have reportedly exported seafood to over a dozen
importers in the United States.6

We are disturbed by the widespread presence of forced labor and human rights violations in the
seafood supply chain and encourage U.S. Customs and Border Protection to use all relevant

1 Urbina, Ian. October 9, 2023. The New Yorker. The Uyghurs Forced to Process the World's Fish.
https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-uyghurs-forced-to-process-the-worlds-fish
2 Ibid.
3 Ibid.
4 Urbina, Ian. October 9, 2023. The New Yorker. The Crimes Behind the Seafood You Eat.
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2023/10/16/the-crimes-behind-the-seafood-you-eat
5 Ibid.
6 Ibid.

2

authorities to investigate, enforce, and penalize these and future violations. As we continue our
work in Congress to reduce human rights violations and increase transparency in the seafood
supply chain, we request the following documents as soon as possible, but not later than November
15, 2023:

* A document sufficient to describe the actions U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the
Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force have taken to prevent the import of seafood linked
to forced labor.

* A document sufficient to describe any actions U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the
Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force take to develop and refine a strategy for targeting
sectors, like seafood, that are likely to violate UFLPA or CAATSA.

* A document sufficient to describe updates on any strategies, investigations, and
enforcement actions U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Forced Labor
Enforcement Task Force may take in response to these newly published allegations.

As the single largest importer of seafood in the world, the U.S. holds tremendous market power to
drive the global changes needed to effectively address forced labor and human rights violations in
the seafood supply chain. But, we must take the necessary actions to prevent and enforce human
right violations and ensure seafood available to American consumers is not derived from forced
labor.

Thank you for your attention to this critical matter. Should you have any questions, please contact
Rachel Gentile with the House Natural Resources Committee at Rachel.Gentile@mail.house.gov.

Sincerely,

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