Nike and Coca-Cola Lobby Against Xinjiang Forced Labor Bill

[mountaineer]

Nike and Coca-Cola Lobby Against Xinjiang Forced Labor Bill
Business groups and major companies like Apple have been pressing Congress to alter legislation cracking down on imports of goods made with forced labor from persecuted Muslim minorities in China.
By Ana Swanson
    Nov. 29, 2020
New York Times

WASHINGTON — Nike and Coca-Cola are among the major companies and business groups lobbying Congress to weaken a bill that would ban imported goods made with forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region, according to congressional staff members and other people familiar with the matter, as well as lobbying records that show vast spending on the legislation.

The bill, which would prohibit broad categories of certain goods made by persecuted Muslim minorities in an effort to crack down on human rights abuses, has gained bipartisan support, passing the House in September by a margin of 406 to 3. Congressional aides say it has the backing to pass the Senate, and could be signed into law by either the Trump administration or the incoming Biden administration.

But the legislation, called the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, has become the target of multinational companies including Apple whose supply chains touch the far western Xinjiang region, as well as of business groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Lobbyists have fought to water down some of its provisions, arguing that while they strongly condemn forced labor and current atrocities in Xinjiang, the act’s ambitious requirements could wreak havoc on supply chains that are deeply embedded in China. ...

New York Times

Also reported at the sports website, Outkick:

LeBron James would be proud.

The New York Times reports that Apple, Nike, and Coca-Cola are among the many global companies and business groups lobbying Congress to weaken a bipartisan bill that cracks down on human rights abuses and forced labor in China.

“The bill also targets so-called poverty alleviation and pairing programs that ship Muslims from impoverished areas to work in factories elsewhere, which human rights groups say are often coercive.”

For human rights supporters, the bill is great news. For companies that care about their bottom line first, it’s terrible. ...

Any company that has seen the impact that a China-driven agenda has had on the NBA should think twice before pushing back against this legislation. Far-left politics and social pandering has caused much of the unprecedented tank in NBA ratings, but it’s obedience to China has also been a factor.

LeBron and the NBA thought closing their eyes and bowing to China was smart business, as do Apple and Nike, for now. It may make financial sense, but if the NBA is any indication, opposing the bill will be an eventual regret.

Full story at Outkick

[mountaineer]

Apple, Nike, Coca-Cola Lobby To Preserve Slavery Of Uighurs By Communist China
November 30, 2020
By Tristan Justice

Major American corporations are flexing their Washington influence to fight legislation reeling towards the president’s desk that curbs their ability to profit off Chinese slave labor.

According to the New York Times on Sunday, Nike, Coca-Cola, and Apple have deployed their teams of lobbyists to push back on a bill prohibiting product imports manufactured in China using forced labor. The bill, Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, passed overwhelmingly in the House with bipartisan support 406-3, is expected to be signed by President Donald Trump or a President Biden next year if approved by the Senate.

Company lobbyists, the Times reported based on discussions with congressional staff and lobbying records, have been working Capitol Hill to weaken the legislation arguing that if passed, it could put excessive stress on supply chains. Targeted provisions include mandates to prove at customs products were made without forced labor and public disclosure requirements documenting ties to Xinjiang, where millions of Uyghur Muslims have been subject to religious persecution, including slavery. ... More at The Federalist

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Kaepernick Quick to Condemn US Slavery, Silent on Nike Ties to Chinese Slave Labor
Warner Todd Huston
30 Nov 2020

Since his debut as a leading athlete protester against the United States, Colin Kaepernick has time and again slammed the U.S. over slavery, even though it was eliminated more than 150 years ago. Yet, Kaepernick has remained utterly silent as his financial backer, Nike, employs slave labor in China to make its products.

This month, news broke that giant multinational corporations including Nike have been 217 in congress against the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, a bill that seeks to put an end to the slave labor camps China employs to manufacture many of the products sold by big corporations in the west.

Nike, along with manufacturers including Apple, Patagonia, Adidas, and many others, was named in a study by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) that identifies 83 international corporations that use factories where the ruling Communist Party of China uses thousands of Uyghur Muslims as slave labor.

Also, nearly 200 labor and human rights groups recently launched a campaign claiming that “virtually the entire apparel industry is tainted by forced Uyghur and Turkic Muslim labour.” The campaign insists that 80 percent of the cotton used to make clothing in China was picked in Xinjiang province using slave labor.

Colin Kaepernick has been utterly silent on all this news, even as he has benefited greatly from the multimillion-dollar contract he has with Nike.  ...

Breitbart