Correspondence
Email sent to the Chinese Foreign Ministry's International Press Center.
The email asked if this was the right contact address for getting an official response about concerns regarding labor imported from Xinjiang and North Korean.
Email sent to the Ministry outlining the findings of The Outlaw Ocean Project's investigation into forced labor in China's seafood processing industry. The email asked: Does the Chinese government have any comment to make about the use of Uyghur labor in China’s seafood processing industry? Has the Chinese government taken steps to check for or address the continuance of North Korean overseas workers in China? It also asked for comment.
Email sent to China's Foreign Ministry saying The Outlaw Ocean Project has found evidence of dozens of fishing ship workers suffering symptoms associated with beriberi, including 15 deaths. The email asked if the government of China is taking steps to address the beriberi risk among Chinese and foreign crew on Chinese fishing vessels, and if the government has any comment.
The Outlaw Ocean Project emailed the Foreign Ministry, asking: "Research bodies such as the Brookings Institution have said that China is expanding its military power by using the Chinese fishing fleet to press territorial claims in various parts of the world as a kind of civilian militia. Does the Ministry have any statement or clarification to make in response to that description?"
Email sent to the international press office of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, saying: "A recent investigation has found a variety of seafood plants in China near the border with North Korea that in the past few years have made use of North Korean workers in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2397. Could the Foreign Ministry please answer the following question: What steps has the Chinese government taken to ensure that North Korean workers are no longer being employed in China as is mandated by the sanctions issued in 2017?"