More Sanctions, Export Controls Needed to Counter Chinese Human Rights Abuses, Congressional Report Says

The Trump administration should sanction Chinese officials and companies responsible for human rights violations against the country's Uighur population, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China said in a Jan. 8 report. The U.S. should also place export controls on a wide range of emerging technologies, add more Chinese agencies to the Commerce Department’s Entity List and make these issues key components of trade negotiations with China, the report said.

The 331-page report, labeled as the commission's 2019 findings and recommendations for human rights conditions in China, follows letters from members of Congress urging the administration to sanction Chinese officials (see 1912160038) and avoid making concessions on the Commerce’s Entity List (see 1911080023). In October, the U.S. added 28 Chinese technology and surveillance entities to its Entity List for involvement in human rights violations (see 1910070076). The U.S. also plans to release a series of export controls on sensitive emerging technologies meant to restrict access to certain foreign governments, particularly China (see 1912160032).

The administration should develop a “whole-of-government approach” to human rights in China, which should involve Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act sanctions against Chinese “business entities and officials,” the report said. The approach should also include additional export controls on emerging technologies such as facial recognition systems, machine learning, and biometric and artificial intelligence technologies. China’s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR) government and security agencies should be placed on the Entity List, the report said, and the U.S. should request further discussions and resolutions on the XUAR at the United Nations Security Council and Human Rights Council.

The administration should work closely with Congress to pass legislation that provides “new authorities” over export controls and limits on U.S. government procurement from China, the commission said, including the Uighur Human Rights Policy Act of 2019. The bill was passed in the House Dec. 3 along with a companion bill in the Senate (see 1912040046). Democratic Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts, who leads the commission alongside Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, said Jan. 8 a compromise bill will move forward “hopefully soon” in both the Senate and the House, according to Reuters. “We will get to ‘yes.’ That is my belief,” McGovern said.

Aside from sanctions, the commission also said U.S. negotiators should discuss the human rights abuses -- along with broader concerns about general freedoms -- during discussions with Chinese officials. “The Administration should develop talking points for U.S. Government officials -- including those engaged in trade negotiations -- that consistently link freedoms of press, speech, and association to U.S. and Chinese interests, noting how censorship prevents the free flow of information on issues of public concern, including public health and environmental crises, food safety problems, and corruption,” the report said.

The U.S. can also strengthen the existing Tiananmen Sanctions, which prohibit “the sale of 'crime control and detection’ equipment … to the Chinese government,” by also prohibiting “related services and training,” the report said. Language can also be added to control technology used for mass surveillance, the “creation of predictive policing platforms, and the gathering of sensitive electronic or biometric information.”