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U.S. bans some Chinese solar imports over Xinjiang forced labor

24 June 2021
 Dan Ackermann

The Biden administration 0n Thursday banned imports of solar materials from a Chinese firm accused of using forced labor in China's Xinjiang region.

Why it matters: It's the latest step in the U.S. push to hold China accountable for its human rights abuses in Xinjiang, where the State Department has accused the Chinese government of carrying out a genocide against Uyghurs and other Muslim ethnic minorities.

  • As part of its sweeping campaign of mass detention, surveillance and forced assimilation, the Chinese government has forced Muslim minorities to work in factories in Xinjiang and other parts of the country.
  • China dominates the supply chain for solar energy equipment, per Politico.

The U.S. is also restricting exports to five Chinese companies allegedly involved in human rights violations.

  • The firms — Hoshine Silicon Industry (Shanshan); Xinjiang Daqo New Energy; Xinjiang East Hope Nonferrous Metals; Xinjiang GCL New Energy Material Technology, and XPCC — are large producers of polysilicon for solar panels.

What they're saying: "The PRC’s use of forced labor in Xinjiang is an integral part of its systematic abuses against the Uyghur population and other ethnic and religious minority groups, and addressing these abuses will remain a high priority," the White House said in a statement.

  • "The United States will not tolerate forced labor in our supply chains and will continue to stand up for our values and for U.S. workers and businesses."

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.