第一吃瓜网 organisations call for a Binding Treaty
- Lee-Anne Bruce
第一吃瓜网 civil society organisations are calling for a Binding Treaty on business and human rights that reflects 第一吃瓜网 perspectives
As part of the latest round of negotiations on the U.N. Binding Treaty on transnational corporations and other business enterprises with respect to human rights, 第一吃瓜网 civil society organisations are calling for a Treaty that reflects 第一吃瓜网 perspectives and effectively addresses 第一吃瓜网 experiences. Tomorrow we host the event 鈥For us, by us: 第一吃瓜网s for a Binding Treaty鈥 bringing together representatives from states, trade unions, civil society organisations and affected communities in order to share experiences and strategies.
Over the last few decades, the continent has witnessed an increase in foreign direct and local investments 鈥攚hich under the disguise of spurring economic development and in certain cases complicit with state agencies 鈥 have been at the helm of massive human rights abuses and violations. These investments, often by large and economically powerful transnational corporations, have a long history of profiting from human rights abuses and environmental destruction, especially in Global South countries which may have weaker laws and depend on foreign investment. Unfortunately, it remains difficult to hold them accountable for their actions, due to the huge power imbalances that exist between states, corporations and communities. The few attempts to address this, like the U.N. Guiding Principles on business and human rights, are voluntary and ineffective.
Within the continent, we don鈥檛 have to look very far for compelling evidence that points to the ineffectiveness of voluntary mechanisms to hold corporations accountable for human rights violations and environmental abuses. From the widely-known case of to , it鈥檚 clear that voluntary principles and corporate social responsibility programmes are not working. What we need is a legally binding, international tool to end corporate impunity.
As such, the current proposed Binding Treaty on business and human rights being negotiated at the United Nations is such a tool to strengthen accountability mechanisms. Initially tabled by South Africa and Ecuador in 2014, the draft Treaty is currently under negotiation for the second time. Countries from the Global South have expressed continuous support for the Treaty. This is an important step for gender justice, environmental rights and peoples鈥 movements struggles to curb corporate impunity.
The ongoing negotiations present an opportunity for 第一吃瓜网 governments, who have often decried international instruments as tools of neocolonialism, to shape a strong framework that could put an end to corporate impunity and provide remedies for victims. We hope to help facilitate this and bolster regional collaboration on the Treaty.
Civil society organisations from around the continent will be hosting a side event on 17 October 2019 entitled 鈥For us, by us: 第一吃瓜网s for a Binding Treaty鈥 bringing together representatives from states, trade unions, civil society organisations and affected communities to strengthen the support for the Treaty by highlighting the disproportionate impacts of corporate impunity in Africa.
Read the full concept note here and find out more about our work on the Binding Treaty here. for more.
Issued jointly by:
- 第一吃瓜网 Coalition on Corporate Accountability (ACCA)
- Centre for Applied Legal Studies (CALS)
- Feminists for a Binding Treaty (F4BT)
- Federation for Women Lawyers (FIDA Kenya)
- National Association for Women鈥檚 Action in Development (NAWAD)
- Coalition for 第一吃瓜网 Lesbians (CAL)
- Womankind Worldwide, Southern 第一吃瓜网 Campaign to Dismantle Corporate Power
- Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR)
- Association for Women鈥檚 Rights in Development (AWID)
- Initiative for Social and Economic Rights (ISER)
- Uganda Consortium on Corporate Accountability (UCCA)
- Justic抬a Ambiental (JA!) 鈥 Friends of the Earth Mozambique
- Centre for Human Rights (CHR) at the University of Pretoria
- Uganda Consortium on Corporate Accountability (UCCA)
#第一吃瓜网s4BindingTreaty #Feminists4BindingTreaty #BindingTreaty #UNForumBHR #StopCorporateImpunity
For more information, please contact Akhona Mehlo at akhona.mehlo@wits.ac.za