scholarly journals The Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights: National Action Plans Toward Corporation Responsibility

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 123 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ni Ketut Supasti Dharmawan ◽  
Desak Putu Dewi Kasih ◽  
I Gede Agus Kurniawan ◽  
Putu Aras Samsithawrati
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Action Plans ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Legal Method ◽  
Global Standards ◽  
Guiding Principles ◽  
The Government

As a global principal, corporations have the obligation to comply with national and international hard law of human rights, respect soft laws and global standards. The United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (GPs) of 2011 were unanimously endorsed by the Human Rights Council and are respected as a global standard that stipulates that corporations should respect human rights when conducting their business activities. The purpose of this paper is to examine the scope and focus of National Action Plans (NAPs) by comparing the Netherlands NAP on Human Rights (2013) is compared to the UK’s updated NAP of 2016 with the aim of providing ideas and good examples of a NAP for Indonesia. This study used normative legal method. It is considered to be a valuable lesson both for developed and developing countries that for practical matters it is highly important to create and implement a NAP for the implementation of the GPs. Fortunately, Indonesia in June 2017 has launched a National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights (NAP). The burden responsibility to carry out the NAP on Business and Human Rights to corporation to be implemented strongly rests on the government authorities both central government and all levels authorities, including the local level, have the duty to implement human rights obligation, including to convince corporations that upholding the GPs will ultimately be to their benefit.

scholarly journals Business and Human Rights in ASEAN: Lessons from the Palm Oil Sector in Malaysia

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 73
Author(s):  
Andika AB. Wahab
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Corporate Culture ◽  
Palm Oil ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Member States ◽  
Oil Companies ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Asean Member ◽  
Guiding Principles

The release of the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights in 2011 aims to address gaps in human rights governance by setting a standard and corporate culture of respecting human rights. As part of the state responsibility to implement these guiding principles, some member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have already embarked preliminary steps towards establishing their respective National Action Plan on Business and Human rights (NAPBHR), while others are still lag behind. This article describes current development on business and human rights in the region. Drawing from the palm oil sector’s experience in Malaysia, this study aims to provide lessons for ASEAN member states to contemplate when developing their NAPBHR. In this article, I argue that while some large palm oil companies have shown modest progress in realizing their human rights obligation, challenges emerge in many forms including the lack of leadership, collaboration and ambition to steer and scale up industry transformation on human rights across supply chain. Equally important, challenges around certification scheme depict that it is not the only solution in persuading respect to human rights. Meaningful values transfer often overlooked in certification practice resulting in typical "ticking the audit box" exercise without understanding principles behind it. As such, the development of NAPBHR among the ASEAN member states should reflect on these reality and challenges.

scholarly journals THE ROLE OF NATIONAL ACTION PLANS IN IMPLEMENTATION OF INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS IN BUSINESS AND HUMAN RIGHTS

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adel I. Abdullin ◽  
Alexey A. Sinyavskiy
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Transnational Corporations ◽  
International Standards ◽  
Action Plans ◽  
Legal Personality ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Protection Of Human Rights ◽  
Guiding Principles ◽  
International Legal Personality

"Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights” are the first universally recognized global international standard in the field of human rights and business. In accordance with them, transnational corporations and other enterprises are obliged to comply with the national laws of states and respect internationally recognized human rights while carrying out their business activities. On 16 June 2011, the Human Rights Council unanimously endorsed the Guidelines in its resolution 17/4, “Human Rights and Transnational Corporations and Other Enterprises,” setting a universal standard for protecting human rights from the adverse effects of transnational corporations and other enterprises. However, in accordance with the doctrine of international law, corporations do not have an international legal personality and their obligations to respect human rights are only voluntary in nature, and therefore, the main obligation to ensure the protection of human rights lies with states. One of the ways to implement international standards in the field of business and human rights in practice is the development by States of National Action Plans. This paper is devoted, firstly, to a summary of the main ideas of the “Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights” as an international legal standard in the field of human rights. Secondly, to consider the role of National Action Plans in the implementation of the Guidelines in EU countries. Thirdly, a review of existing practices for the implementation of these principles by EU states using National Action Plans

scholarly journals Sobre derechos humanos en la actividad empresarial en entornos multiculturales (e interculturales)

2019 ◽  
pp. 69-104
Author(s):  
Luisa Fernanda Duque Muñoz ◽  
Laura Álvarez Tobar ◽  
María Jimena Fernández Merchán
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Business Activity ◽  
Action Plans ◽  
Poor State ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Derechos Humanos ◽  
Guiding Principles ◽  
The Relationship

El presente artículo sugiere una aproximación metodológica para aplicar el enfoque de derechos humanos a la actividad empresarial en entornos multiculturales (o interculturales), zonas con influencia del conflicto armado o donde exista una ausencia del Estado. Para ello se lleva a cabo una revisión de dos casos (María la Baja y Buenaventura), los cuales permiten examinar la relación entre empresas y derechos humanos, a la luz de los Principios Rectores sobre las empresas y los derechos humanos (PR), y su ejecución en Colombia. Se insiste en la importancia de continuar con el estudio de este tema y en que las empresas, en tanto actores con amplia injerencia en los territorios, den cumplimiento a estos principios. Abstract: This paper proposes a methodology for applying the human rights approach to business activity in multicultural (or intercultural) environments; areas that are under the influence of armed conflict; or where there is poor State presence. Through the examination of 2 case studies (María la Baja and Buenaventura) we examine the relationship between business and human rights, under the framework of the Guiding Principles on Human Rights and Business and their implementation in Colombia. We focus on the importance of addressing this issue and demanding one of the actors that has more influence in territories, such as corporations, to comply with these principles. Keywords: Corporations and human rights, Guiding principles on business and human rights, National Action Plans, Multiculturality, Interculturality, Methodology.

Contributory Fault under International Law: A Gateway for Human Rights in ISDS?

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Farouk El-Hosseny ◽  
Patrick Devine
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
International Law ◽  
Multinational Enterprises ◽  
Indigenous Rights ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Investment Treaty ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
The Government ◽  
Bear Creek ◽  
Shed Light

Abstract The intersection between foreign investment and human rights is gaining attention, as is evident from an increasing number of investment treaty awards analysing legal issues relating to human rights. In the recent International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) arbitration of Bear Creek v Peru, Philippe Sands QC posited, in a dissenting opinion, that the investor’s contribution to events—ie protests against its allegedly adverse environmental impact and disregard of indigenous rights, namely resulting from its ‘inability to obtain a “social licence”’—which led to the unlawful expropriation of its investment, was ‘significant and material’. He further noted that the investor’s ‘responsibilities are no less than those of the government’ and found that damages should thus be reduced. Last year, the Netherlands adopted a new model bilateral investment treaty (BIT), which allows tribunals to ‘take into account non-compliance by the investor with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises’ when assessing damages. These recent developments shed light on how states and tribunals, as part of their decision-making process, can take into account human rights in practice, and crucially in respect of damages analyses. By first dissecting the concept of contributory fault, then shedding light on the intersection of investment treaty law and human rights, as elucidated in recent jurisprudence, this article questions whether there now exists a gateway for human rights obligations (soft or hard) in the investment treaty arbitration realm through the concept of contributory fault.

A Decade of UNGPs in India: Progressive Policy Shifts, Contested Implementation

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Vasanthi SRINIVASAN ◽  
Parvathy VENKATACHALAM
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
National Guidelines ◽  
Effective Implementation ◽  
Spheres Of Influence ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Policy Shift ◽  
Social Environmental ◽  
Progressive Policy ◽  
Policy Shifts

Abstract The decade of the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) coincides with India’s National Voluntary Guidelines on businesses’ social, environmental, and economic responsibilities (NVGs) and the National Guidelines on Responsible Business Conduct (NGRBC) – an updated version of the NVGs. Human rights are one of the core principles in both guidelines and they draw upon the ‘Protect–Respect–Remedy’ framework of the UNGPs. The NVGs and NGRBC go beyond the UNGPs by requiring organizations not only to respect human rights, but also to promote them in their spheres of influence. Several factors, however, derailed the implementation of this progressive policy shift. This article explores the challenges in implementation and calls for the multiple actors involved to work together and shape a collaborative action plan for effective implementation of the NGRBC in the next decade. The authors reiterate the need for alternative lenses to frame the responsible business agenda within developing countries through positive obligations.

scholarly journals When Rights Enter the CSR Field: British Firms’ Engagement with Human Rights and the UN Guiding Principles

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alvise Favotto ◽  
Kelly Kollman
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Global Markets ◽  
Business Practices ◽  
Due Diligence ◽  
New Governance ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Market Competitiveness ◽  
Guiding Principles ◽  
Corporate Social

AbstractThe adoption of the Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights by the United Nations (UNGPs) in 2011 created a new governance instrument aimed at improving the promotion of human rights by business enterprises. While reaffirming states duties to uphold human rights in law, the UNGPs called on firms to promote the realization of human rights within global markets. The UNGPs thus have sought to embed human rights more firmly within the field of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and to use CSR practices to improve corporate human rights accountability. In this paper, we explore how this incorporation of human rights into the CSR field has affected the business practices and public commitments British firms have made to promote human rights. We analyse the CSR reports published by the 50 largest British firms over a 20-year period starting in the late 1990s and interview senior CSR managers of these firms. We find that these firms have expanded how they articulate their responsibility for human rights over time. These commitments however remain largely focused on improving management practices such as due diligence and remediation procedures. Firms are often both vague and selective about which substantive human rights they engage with in light of their concerns about their market competitiveness and broader legitimacy. These outcomes suggest that, while firms cannot completely resist the normative pressures exerted by the CSR field, they retain significant resources and agency in translating such pressure into concrete practices.

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