CBP Modifies WRO on Dominican Sugar Company With Ties to Trump Administration
CBP modified a withhold release order on Dominican Republic sugar company Central Romana, allowing it to import into the U.S.
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Labor rights organization Corporate Accountability Lab expressed dismay at the modification, saying that it is "disappointed" and will continue to "fight alongside the workers and organizations in the Dominican Republic until forced labor is, in fact, remediated."
A person close to the case, who asked to remain anonymous, said that CBP has faced constant pressure after instituting the WRO from government officials close to the owners of the company. In reality, they said, the company has "made no significant progress, only extremely superficial changes" to working conditions in the DR. They also said that "CBP received instructions from very high up in the Trump administration to do this. They did not follow the typical process for modifying a WRO." CBP didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
In 2024, the Fanjul Corporation, which partly owns Central Romana, donated $1 million to the Make America Great Again political action committee and a $413,000 donation to the Republican National Committee, according to OpenSecrets, a nonprofit. The corporation also donated smaller sums to Democrats.
CBP updated the WRO on March 17 without an announcement, though they have traditionally announced such in a press release (see 2408140018). The agency initially imposed the WRO in 2022 after finding "information that reasonably indicates the use of forced labor in its operation" (see 2211230037).
Allie Brudney, a senior staff attorney at Corporate Accountability Lab, said that "the situation on the ground has been and continues to be heartbreaking" for the workers employed at Central Romana's facilities.
Importantly, the WRO was not revoked, only modified, so it can be reinstated should additional evidence of forced labor conditions arise.
The Dominican Ministry of Industry and Commerce issued a statement saying that it "welcomed" the decision by CBP, and Minister of Industry and Commerce Victor Bisono said that "this progress reinforces the country's image."
Labor rights activists could not disagree more. "There's a very long way to go to improve the situation," Brudney said. "But international organizations are going to continue to work to improve conditions so that there are good jobs instead of slave-like conditions."