NEW ACTION: Car companies are complicit
From Krysta Bisnauth, Freedom United
| Did you know that over 100 international manufacturers of automotive parts or cars have some exposure to materials or products made with Uyghur forced labor? It’s true and what’s worse is that the ten biggest car companies in the world are implicated, according to research on the auto industry, and have reported nothing. |
| Take action |
We wrote to Volkswagen, Toyota, Stellantis (which owns several popular brands including Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat and Peugeot), Mercedes-Benz, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Tesla, Nissan and BYD (a Chinese brand) to ask how they have responded in the three months since the report ‘Driving Force: Automotive Supply Chains and Forced Labor in the Uyghur Region’[1] was released.
Only one company responded – and it was more of the same boilerplate answer given to the researchers.[2] We have no indication that any car brand has launched urgent investigations towards divesting from this forced labor system.
| This is unacceptable. |
| Sign the petition |
“If you have bought a car in the last five years, some of its parts were likely made by Uyghurs and others forced to work in China…The auto industry cannot wait another day to trace their supply chains back to the raw materials. To do anything short of full tracing would be an enormous legal, ethical, and reputational risk.” – Driving Force: Automotive Supply Chains and Forced Labor in the Uyghur Region
| According to the report, the Uyghur Region alone represents around 10% of the world’s global aluminum production and also hosts the world’s largest steel and copper suppliers. These companies are shirking their responsibility to the public and when they do so they make you and I part of the forced labor system when we travel in these vehicles. |
| Act now |
| In addition to our new action, today Freedom United and partners kick off a week of action against Volkswagen which has the most links to the Uyghur forced labor system. Join us this week on Twitter and Instagram. |
| Follow @freedomunitedhq |
We know that other car companies are benefiting from exploitation and forced labor, but companies like Volkswagen represent a massive share of the global car market that has not taken the necessary steps to be more transparent about its supply chain.
Take action today and urge them to cut ties with the Uyghur forced labor system.
In solidarity,
Krysta and the team supporting the Freedom United community
