BRUSSELS - More than 70 civil societies, human rights coalitions and trade unions have released a joint statement on the European Commission's proposals to ban products made with forced labour from the single market.
They broadly welcome the proposals but call for them to go further to help the estimated 17.3 million people in forced labour in the private sector globally and the 3.9 million people in state-imposed forced labour.
The European Commission proposals, which follow similar moves in the US such as the Uyghur Forced Labour Prevention Act (UFLPA), were announced last month and will apply to products made both in and outside of Europe.
