U.S. to seize frankincense imports from Somaliland supplier accused of forced labor

[Deeq A.]

Products containing frankincense made by the Somali company Asli Maydi will be seized by customs agents at U.S. ports of entry under an order issued Friday. The company is accused of using forced labor. File Photo by snotch/Wikimedia Commons

A Somaliland company that manufactures frankincense, an aromatic resin that the wise men gifted to Jesus in the Bible story of his birth, will see its products confiscated at U.S. ports under sanctions issued Friday.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel at all U.S. ports of entry will now detain frankincense and frankincense-based products sourced from Asli Maydi, a company based in the self-declared nation of Somaliland, due to suspected use of forced labor, officials announced.

Frankincense, one of world’s oldest commodities that is distilled from the resin of African Boswellia trees, is commonly used in essential oils for fragrance and skincare.

The CBP said it has collected evidence that Asli Maydi has engaged in “deception, physical violence, abusive working conditions, intimidation and threats and withholding of wages.”

“Trading in goods made with forced labor is in direct opposition to American values,” said CBP Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Commissioner Troy Miller. “When goods are manufactured at the cost of someone’s health, safety, or freedom, we all lose.

“CBP will continue to pursue aggressive enforcement actions to hold unscrupulous businesses, importers, and manufacturers around the world accountable.”

Under U.S. law, the importation of goods produced in foreign countries by convict, forced, indentured or child labor is prohibited. Such goods are liable for seizure and forfeiture at ports of entry.

A two-year investigation conducted by the nonprofit news website The Fuller Project and The Guardian published last year reported that a dozen women working for Asli Maydi claimed the company “routinely underpays its workers, requires them to work in harsh conditions that are linked to health problems” and is led by a “politically powerful man whom multiple women have accused of sexual harassment and assault.”

Asli Maydi’s owner, Barkhad Hassan, denied all the allegations against him, but the investigation led to a decision by the Utah-based essential oils marketer doTERRA in August to terminate its frankincense contract with the Somali supplier.

The company said its independent investigation of Asli Maydi determined that in certain cases it “did not pay harvesters and sorters in a fair and on-time manner” and that some Asli Maydi facilities “did not have adequate access to clean water and sanitation.”

The company said it could not confirm the sexual harassment claims against Hassan, but added that it treats “any allegation of sexual assault with the utmost seriousness.”

DoTERRA also reported that in retaliation for its contract being terminated, Asli Maydi “overtook” a healthcare facility the U.S. company owns and operates in Somaliland, forcing all of its patients and staff to “immediately evacuate the premises.”

“DoTERRA is actively supporting legal action to manage the transfer of the hospital to Somaliland’s Ministry of Health Development,” the company said.

Source: UPI

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