China’s Uyghurs, Human Rights, and America’s Trade Sanctions

Abstract

Whenever one country calls for trade-restrictive measures against imports from another country owing to alleged human rights abuses in that other country a question arises of the link between international trade and human rights. In the absence of guidance or protocols in multilateral trade law or agreements what is left to examine are case studies of bilateral trade relations.

Of such relations, Sino-American trade ties stand out. Imports and exports between the world’s two largest economies are fraught with human rights challenges; indeed, they have been even before China joined the WTO on 11 December 2001.

The present article chronicles this case study. The article urges that the case signals both optimism and an admonition about motivations versus consequences when adopting trade measures in support of human rights.

Keywords: China, Uyghur, Human Rights, America, Trade Sanctions, Export Restrictions, individual sanctions, import restrictions