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Ahram Online
The Biden administration imposed on Thursday new sanctions on several Chinese biotech and surveillance companies and government entities for actions in the Xinjiang province. The decision stands against Beijing’s abuses on Uyghur Muslims’ human rights in China’s Western region.
The Commerce Department is targeting China’s Academy of Military Medical Sciences and its 11 research institutes which focus on using biotechnology to support the Chinese military. The move will bar American companies from selling components to the proscribed entities without a license.
“The scientific pursuit of biotechnology and medical innovation can save lives. Unfortunately, the PRC (People’s Republic of China) is choosing to use these technologies to pursue control over its people and for its repression of members of ethnic and religious minority groups”, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said in a statement.
“The Treasury Department will also issue penalties against several Chinese entities. US intelligence has established that Beijing has set up a high-tech surveillance system across Xinjiang which use biometric facial recognition and has collected DNA samples from all residents of ages 12 to 65 as part of a systematic effort to suppress Uyghurs”, a senior administration official who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The White House announced last week it would stage a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing, citing China’s “egregious human rights abuses and atrocities in Xinjiang”. US athletes will continue to compete, but Biden will not send the usual contingent of dignitaries.
The administration said this week it “supported bipartisan legislation banning imports into the US from Xinjiang unless companies can demonstrate the goods were not produced by forced labour”.
China has denied any abuses and says the steps it has taken are necessary to combat terrorism and a separatist movement.
