Suspicion of Forced Labour of Intellectually Disabled People in Korea's Taepyeong Salt Fields Emerge

The US has imposed an import ban on solar salt products produced by a Korean company, citing “forced labour.” This is the first time that a foreign government has banned the import of a Korean company’s products for the reason that they were made using forced labour. Since 2014, suspicions of human trafficking and forced labor of intellectually disabled people have emerged in salt fields in Sinan-gun, including Taipyeong Salt Fields. In 2022, victims of forced labour in salt fields spoke to the media, saying things like "I ran away but was caught" and "I was beaten." The US has imposed an import ban on solar salt products produced by a Korean company, citing "forced labour." This is the first time that a foreign government has banned the import of a Korean company's products for the reason that they were made using forced labour. Episode Notes: ' “Disabled people forced to work at Taepyeong Salt Fields in Korea” – US Imposes Import Ban’: https://barrierfreejapan.com/2025/04/08/disabled-people-forced-to-work-at-taipyeong-salt-fields-in-korea-us-imposes-import-ban/