The CCP’s use of Uyghur and Kazakh slaves allows China to manufacture the world’s cheapest solar panels and the first world to feel smug about using them.
You know, that holier-than-thou grin worn by the faux ‘green’ who reckons he’s done his fair share to save the planet by pinning a few kilowatts worth of panels on his roof, that deliver a trickle of power for five or six hours a day. Albeit with the help of mandated targets and a mass of taxpayer and/or power consumer funded subsidies, including outrageously generous Feed in Tariffs.
But, in an effort to prick their sanctimonious sense of self-righteousness, an Australian Senator, Rex Patrick is determined to lift the lid on what is an outrageous abuse of human rights, all directed at providing cheap and nasty solar panels to the well-to-do in the West.
The CCP – hardly renowned for its compassion – has rounded up something in the order of 2.6 million of its minorities and enslaved them as “surplus labour”, hundreds of thousands of them have been directed into dozens of China’s large-scale solar manufacturing plants; coerced with a mix of mass incarceration (aka “re-education camps”), threats to the victim’s families and actual violence -in so-called “labour transfer” programs.
As Senator Patrick has found, the solar fans and their political apologists are either ignorant of, or immune to, the genocide that’s being perpetrated in order to provide them with shiny, and very visible signs of their purported ‘green’ virtue. So much so that his Bill to stop Australians relying upon products produced by the CCP’s slaves has found little support in the Federal Parliament. [Note to Rex: thou dare not speak ill of wonderful solar power, lest you be branded a ‘climate denier’]. Here’s Rex Patrick being interviewed by Andrew Bolt on what can only be described as an outrageous abuse of human rights, all in the name of ‘green’ virtue.
‘Human rights issue’: Solar panels made using Uyghur slave labour
Sky News
Andrew Bolt and Rex Patrick
16 November 2021
South Australian Senator Rex Patrick says solar panels made using Uyghur slave labour is a “human rights issue”.
“Australia needs to take a very strong, positive stand to make sure people understand that genocide is not acceptable,” Mr Patrick told Sky News host Andrew Bolt.
The independent senator from South Australia has introduced a bill, which went through the Senate in August, that banned the import of any goods that were made from slave labour from any jurisdiction.
“Unfortunately, that bill has now languished in the House,” Mr Patrick said.
“That bill would stop anything that came to Australia, where Border Force could identify something in its supply chain that was made using slave labour.”
Transcript
Andrew Bolt: Last night, I showed you some really disgusting videos. U.S. President, Joe Biden’s climate envoy, John Kerry. Last week saying that it wasn’t his job to go and ask China whether it was using slave labour, to make the solar panels of China, selling to the world. His job was just to get more of them, or to be more accurate, to get a global warming deal with China. The world’s biggest emitter.
Speaker: How in the several months of meetings, behind the scenes with China, did you bring up some of those very contentious issues? Such as the use of forced labour and Xinjiang for building solar panels. How did you address it? And how did you overcome that in reaching this final…?
John Kerry: Well, we’re honest about the differences and we certainly know what they are and we’ve articulated them. But that’s not my lane here. My job is to be the climate guy.
Andrew Bolt: Moral zero, but some politicians here, they don’t think this is something you can ignore, pretend that it’s not in your lane. China actually makes the vast majority of the solar panels that we put on our roofs. Many made in part with slave labour, by some of the million or so Muslim Uyghurs that China’s, reportedly put into prison camps, for instance. In fact, professor Laura Murphy, of the Helena Kennedy Centre for International Justice, says nearly everyone in the world is buying solar panels, is likely to be buying products made with forced labour. Now, Rex Patrick is an Independent Senator for South Australia. He’s now trying to get parliament to pass a law against this sort of thing. He joined me earlier and I asked him, what is it that he’s trying to achieve?
Rex Patrick: Look, I’ve got a bill that went through the Senate in August that banned the import of any goods that were made using slave labour from any jurisdiction. Unfortunately, that bill has now languished in the House. That bill would stop anything that came to Australia where Border Force could identify something, in its supply chain, that was made using slave labour.
Andrew Bolt: Now, one of the prime examples of that would be forced labour by Muslim Uighurs in China. Particularly on things like solar panels. What is it that offends you so much? Why should we make a big stand on that?
Rex Patrick: Well, this is a human rights issue. And of course, in the case of the Uighurs in Western China, it also intersects with genocide, which is occurring there in Australia. Australia really needs to take a very strong, positive stand to make sure that people understand that genocide is not acceptable. So whilst I’m very, very comfortable that the Senate passed a bill that dealt with all jurisdictions. It’s particularly important in relation to the Uyghurs in Western China.
Andrew Bolt: And the Chinese Government says, “No, no, no, that’s not forced labour. It’s not slave labour.” You don’t believe them?
Rex Patrick: Oh, look, there’s been plenty of international studies in relation to what is happening in Xinjiang. And indeed the Australian Strategic Policy Institute has examined this issue in great detail. There’s no doubt in my mind as to what is going on there. And unfortunately the Chinese aren’t exactly opening doors and letting people in to see what is happening there.
Andrew Bolt: Now, you’ve had the support obviously of enough Senators in the Senate to get this through. As you say, it’s not going through the lower house, where the government and its allies have the numbers. Why has the Morrison Government so far refused to support you?
Rex Patrick: Look, I can’t understand why there hasn’t been support from the Morrison Government. I know there are some Liberal Senators that have indicated to me, behind the scenes, that they’re very concerned about it. This does a few things. My bill, it helps reduce the incentive for people to employ or utilise slave labour. It also allows Australia to stand tall in the international community in pointing out that this is wrong. But it finally harms Australian businesses.
Solar panels are a good example of a product that could be made here in Australia. But Australian businesses have no way of competing against mass production in areas where they are using slave labour and in effect, having no labour costs. So it harms Australian businesses as well. I just don’t understand why the Morrison Government won’t take a strong moral and ethical standard. It’s not like we are going to offend China anymore than they have already been offended or they’ve chosen to play games in relation to Australian trade. They don’t pick up the phone to our Ministers. They have imposed duties inappropriately and we are now battling that out in the Hague. There’s nothing to fear for the Australian Government to support this bill and to support making sure that we are working to eliminate slave labour in Xinjiang and around the world.
Andrew Bolt: Rex Patrick, thank you so much for your time and good luck to you.
Rex Patrick: Thank you.
via STOP THESE THINGS
November 30, 2021 by stopthesethings
You must be logged in to post a comment.