Import Bans on Products from Forced Labor in the Trump Era

Abstract

On 30 September 2019, the United States prohibited the imports of five products suspected of being made with forced labor from companies all over the world. This article contextualizes these Withhold Release Orders from the perspective of international law and politics. While the Trump Administration’s blunt and protectionist trade policy has been widely criticized, this article argues that it might also have created an opening to rethink the multilateral trade regime that prioritizes free trade over the abolishment of forced labor.