China’s network of penal forced labor facilities, established in the early years of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) government to hold both criminals and political dissidents, remains in operation today. U.S. law prohibits the importation of goods produced “wholly or in part in any foreign country by convict labor or/and forced labor or/and indentured labor under penal sanctions.”<ref>Tariff Act of 1930, 19 U.S. Code 19 § 1307.</ref> Artificial flowers, Christmas lights, shoes, garments, umbrellas as well as coal, cotton, electronics, fireworks, footwear, nails, and toys have been identified as produced in Chinese prison factories for export. There have been several instances of letters and notes from prisoners describing their confinement, working conditions and mistreatment discovered in products purchased by consumers outside China; at [[Christmas]] in 2019 a six year old girl in [[London]], in a box of newly purchased Christmas cards, found one that had a message in English saying,
{{quotebox-float|"We are foreign prisoners in Shanghai Qingpu prison China Forced to work against our will. Please help us and notify human rights organization."<ref>https://www.npr.org/2019/12/23/790832681/6-year-old-finds-message-alleging-chinese-prison-labor-in-box-of-christmas-cards</ref>}}
Profitable prison companies help to fund the operations of both local and national government. Prison labor enterprises producing [[high-tech]] goods such as [[semiconductor]]s and optical instruments are the most profitable, each earning an estimated annual revenue of tens of millions of dollars and paying taxes to the Chinese government. According to the 2012 ''Trafficking in Persons Report'' from the [[United States Department of State]],
{{quotebox|“[t]he [PRC] government reportedly profits from [the use of] forced labor. Many prisoners and detainees in ‘reeducation through labor’ facilities [are] required to work, often with no remuneration.”}}