Nebraska Panhandle News

Last week, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE), along with three other senators, sent a bipartisan letter to Christopher Pratt, Chair of the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (FLETF). The letter urges action against Communist China’s circumvention of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFPLA) through forced labor transfers. This request follows a joint investigation by the New York Times, which revealed that thousands of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities are being forced to work in factories outside Xinjiang.

“On May 29, 2025, the New York Times, the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, and Der Spiegel published a joint investigation detailing efforts by Communist China to ship tens of thousands of Uyghur workers out of the Xinjiang province—and into factories across China,” said Ricketts. “It is clear based off of the joint investigation referenced above that further measures are needed to drastically expand the UFPLA Entity List to address these forced labor transfer programs outside Xinjiang and crack down on Communist China’s evasion of U.S. law.”

The letter was also signed by Senators Jeff Merkley (D-OR), John Curtis (R-UT), and Chris Coons (D-DE), all members of the Foreign Relations Committee.

Since June 2022, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has reviewed over 11,000 shipments under UFPLA enforcement mechanisms. These actions have prompted companies to enhance supply chain due diligence and move away from suppliers exploiting Uyghurs in China.

A report by the International Labor Organization indicated that these labor transfer programs severely restrict employment choice. The UFPLA mandates FLETF to update an entity list including those involved in forced labor activities related to persecuted groups from Xinjiang.

Currently containing 144 entities, with 37 added in January alone, there is a call for expansion based on recent findings. The senators requested a briefing by July 18, 2025, on FLETF's intended actions against China's evasion tactics and its engagement plan with private sectors for compliance improvement.

“We stand ready to work with FLETF to ensure it has both the resources and authorities necessary to tackle these grotesque human rights abuses that the PRC uses to artificially lower the costs of goods and undermine American workers,” concluded their statement.