Ottawa, October 21, 2025 – This morning, the Canada Tibet Committee (CTC) participated in a press conference on Parliament Hill hosted by the Bloc Québécois to highlight new legislation aimed at blocking the importation of goods made using forced labour. The event brought national attention to the growing body of evidence that China’s state-run labour transfer programs are targeting Tibetans and Uyghurs on a mass scale, and the urgent need for Canada to take concrete steps to ensure its market does not become complicit.
CTC Executive Director Sherap Therchin emphasized that forced labour is not a theoretical concern but a documented reality in Tibet. Since 2015, hundreds of thousands of Tibetans have been removed from their traditional livelihoods and placed into state-directed labour schemes under the banner of “poverty alleviation” and “skills development.” As noted by UN human rights experts in a joint statement in April 2023, these programs are coercive, anchored in ideological indoctrination, and may constitute forced labour under international law.
The proposed legislation would prevent products connected to these coercive systems from entering the Canadian market. By strengthening prohibitions and supply-chain due diligence requirements, Canada can help ensure that our economy does not fuel or profit from human rights abuses.
CTC was honoured to join Hon. Yves-François Blanchet, Leader of the Bloc Québécois, MP Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, MP Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay and Uyghur advocate Mehmet Tohti at this announcement.
