LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – U.S. lawmakers, including Rep. John Moolenaar of Michigan, have accused Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL) and Gotion High-Tech of having connections to forced labor and human rights abuses in China’s supply chain, particularly implicating them in Uyghur oppression.

Companies deny allegations.

The allegations, vehemently denied by both companies, have sparked a call from the Republican-led US House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party to block shipments of their products into the U.S.

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CATL, the world’s largest battery manufacturer, and Gotion, a major player in lithium-ion batteries, assert that the claims are groundless and cite inaccurate and misleading information regarding their suppliers.

These denials come amidst a broader context of escalating trade tensions between the U.S. and China, particularly in the clean energy technology sector. With the U.S. recently imposing higher tariffs on imports of lithium-ion batteries from China, there are implications for battery energy storage systems.

Former ambassadors reach out to labor unions to call for cancellation of Gotion and CATL deals.

Because of these allegations of the two companies being connected to forced labor and human rights abuses, former United States Ambassadors Peter Hoekstra and Joseph Cella of the Michigan-China Economic and Security Review Group have issued a stark call to action, urging labor leaders to demand an end to Governor Whitmer’s agreements with China-based companies CATL and Gotion.

Their plea comes in response to what they view as alarming evidence linking these companies to Chinese slave labor and the ongoing Uyghur genocide. Highlighting the gravity of the situation, the former ambassadors and lawmakers allege that CATL and Gotion are directly affiliated with the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC), a paramilitary entity deeply implicated in human rights abuses in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR).

Imprisonment, rape, torture and more by the PRC is alleged.

The atrocities committed in this region by the PRC, according to Hoekstra and Cella, include “mass arbitrary imprisonment, torture, rape, forced sterilization, forced labor, and authoritarian restrictions on freedom of religion, expression and movement.”

In their press release, the ambassadors call out the lack of due diligence in the initial “deals” struck by Governor Whitmer and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), which are now costing Michigan taxpayers nearly $4 billion. They emphasize that had proper scrutiny been applied, these agreements, shrouded in secrecy and non-disclosure agreements, would never have been approved.

An appeal to labor leaders.

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In a letter to the ALF-CIO, the Teamsters and UAW labor leaders, the ambassadors have highlighted the crucial role of labor unions in defending national interests, citing their historic stance against foreign threats and their advocacy for measures such as the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.

The former ambassadors have appealed to the labor leaders to stand against the exploitation of Chinese workers and the undermining of American industries, urging the leaders to join with them in calling for the cancellation of the agreements with CATL and Gotion in order to heed the call for solidarity and ensure that American taxpayer dollars are not used to perpetuate injustice.