scholarly journals Human Rights Obligations of Private Security and Military Companies: A Review of the Current Legal Framework and Practices

2021 ◽  
pp. 262-278
Author(s):  
Kateryna Buriakovska
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Code Of Conduct ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Private Security ◽  
Security Services ◽  
High Profile ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Monetary Rewards ◽  
Private Military Companies

The rapid growth in demand for private military and security services among states,international organizations and non-state actors has turned this activity into a powerful industry withmillions of people who perform – on a contractual basis and in exchange for monetary rewards – actions,which, however, often pose risks to the rights of others, local communities and nations around theworld. The author explains the urgency of the article by high-profile cases of possible participationof private military companies in the events of the occupation of Crimea and the armed conflict inDonbas, initiation of new legislation on military consulting in Ukraine and, at the same time, by themodest attention of Ukrainian jurisprudence to human rights obligations of companies providingsecurity services as non-governmental entities. The author examines the evolution of some approaches to the international legal regulation of private military and security activities and their compliance with modern approaches to humanrights. The author analyzes the features of corporate responsibility in the field of human rights ofprivate military and security companies, the content of which is embodied in the InternationalCode of Conduct for Private Security Providers (ICoC). The analysis compares the approaches ofthe International Code of Conduct for Private Security Providers and the UN Guiding Principleson Business and Human Rights.

scholarly journals National, International and Legal Mechanisms of Control over the Activity of Non-Government Security Entities

2019 ◽  
Vol 73 (2) ◽  
pp. 31-36
Author(s):  
М. В. Завальний
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Private Security ◽  
General Tendency ◽  
Physical Force ◽  
Security Sector ◽  
Security Services ◽  
Private Security Companies ◽  
Business Structures ◽  
Security Companies

The author of the article has studied the reasons for introducing a control mechanism over the activities of private security companies, which play an increasingly important role in the security sector worldwide. These companies by providing security services, directly influence the security, human rights and democratic order of the country. In this regard, it has been emphasized that the issues of legal regulation of the activities and responsibilities of private security companies are particularly important for society and the state. The importance of controlling private security companies and security services is conditioned by the particularities of the services provided by these entities. Private security companies in the course of their activities can apply physical force, special means (in some countries even firearms) to citizens, carry out their detention, which in turn can cause degrading treatment and physical suffering. Further privatization and outsourcing in the security sector has led to a significant expansion of this area and increased risks of human rights and freedoms’ violations. The author has stated that the purpose of control over the activity of non-government entities in the field of security and safety is to prevent deviations from the established order of state security and public order protection, prevention, detection and termination of actions that harm the protected state interests. The need to strengthen this control is due to two main aspects: 1) there is a need to raise the standards of corporate governance in the field of non-governmental protection of human rights; 2) there is a more general tendency to regulate the behavior of all business structures regarding human rights in all areas of their activities. The author has distinguished four possible ways to influence private security companies: national legal systems and courts; corporate norms; international and regional voluntary initiatives; international and legal regulation.

Regolazione internazionale e responsabilitŕ globale delle imprese transnazionali

2009 ◽  
pp. 229-258
Author(s):  
Fabrizio Marrella
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
International Law ◽  
Global Financial Crisis ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Transnational Corporations ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
State Control ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
The Global Financial Crisis

- In recent years and before the global financial crisis, international law has struggled to regulate the activity of transnational corporations since the latter have greatly expanded their capacity for action on a global scale. Despite numerous efforts by the International Community to agree on a hard law international legal framework, the soft law process has been the primary arena for the regulation of transnational corporations and human rights. In addition, host state control, home state control and international responsibility of directors and companies itself have so far remained the fundamental avenues through which issues of global corporate responsibility have been assessed. ‘Contractualisation' of human rights has also been viewed as a further avenue to control the human rights impact of corporate activity. The UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises has generated an impressive stock of report capitalizing on issues well known in specialised international economic law literature. He is raising global awareness and institutionalizing new paradigms of understanding the complex relationship between business and human rights: a matter of vital importance for this century. The work of the UN Special Representative constitutes therefore a step forward towards an holistic approach of contemporary international law.

scholarly journals Konvencijas par uzņēmējdarbību un cilvēktiesībām nepieciešamība

2021 ◽  
pp. 97-103
Author(s):  
Mārtiņš Birģelis ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Working Group ◽  
Transnational Corporations ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
International Treaty ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Human Rights Council ◽  
The Impact

The current legal framework does not properly address the impact that transna­tional corporations have on human rights. In 2014, the UN Human Rights Council established an open-ended intergovernmental working group with a mandate to elaborate an international legally binding instrument to regulate the activities of transnational corporations and other business enter­prises. Yet this decision was strongly contested. This article outlines the main arguments for desirability of an international treaty on business and human rights and provides a response to some of the most common objections raised against the development of such legally binding instrument.

scholarly journals The Securing a Claim in the Context of Sustainable Development: An Evaluation of the Latvian Experience

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 281
Author(s):  
Andrejs Gvozdevičs
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Legal Norms ◽  
Inductive Methods ◽  
Protection Of Human Rights ◽  
The Right

Article 6 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms provides for the right of everyone to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal established by law. An important guarantee, such as the enforcement of a court judgment, is also enshrined in human rights theory and practice, as unenforced judgments pose a threat to legal stability, which is one of the fundamental basis for the sustainable development of society. The institute of law of the securing a claim serves in cases where execution of the future judgment may be impossible or made substantially more difficult. The aim of the research is to study the legal framework, which determines the regulations of the securing a claim in Latvia in order to make proposals for enhancement of the legal framework. The research deployed descriptive, analytical and deductive-inductive methods as well as the methods of interpretation of legal norms. Using these methods, legal acts, views of legal scientists and case law were reviewed and analyzed, and subsequently conclusions and recommendations were made. Analyzing the development of the securing a claim it can be admitted that this institute of law in Latvia has problems as the application of the securing a claim in court practice within the framework of limited adversarial and dispositivity principles, as well as shortcomings in the theoretical foundations of the securing a claim which are based on the findings of legal scientists of the last century. As a result of the research, the author drew the conclusions, that Latvia does not make sufficient use of the long-standing successful procedural solutions for securing a claim in others states, such as court mortgages, bank guarantee or mortgage of the plaintiff to secure the defendant's losses, defendant's protection letter to protect against unjustified securing a claim, a possibility to secure a claims which are not financial in nature and many more that can make legal regulation of the securing a claim more modern and effective.

Firms working in Israel face pressure on Palestinians

2018 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Jewish People ◽  
Content Type ◽  
High Profile ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Arab Minority ◽  
The Right ◽  
Oil And Gas Sector

Significance The July 19 law’s limiting of the right of national self-determination in Israel to the Jewish people has angered the Arab minority and provoked international criticism, including comparisons to South Africa’s apartheid-era legislation. Impacts Human rights risks may deter some investors, particularly for high-profile or large-scale projects such as in the oil and gas sector. Projects in towns and cities with large Arab populations such as Jerusalem, Haifa, Jaffa and Nazareth will face particular scrutiny. To ward off criticism, compliance with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights will be increasingly important.

The Involvement of Private Security Companies in Multinational Military Operations

2019 ◽  
pp. 406-423
Author(s):  
Hin-Yan Liu
Keyword(s):  
Legal Framework ◽  
Private Security ◽  
Soft Law ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Territorial State ◽  
Home State ◽  
Private Security Companies ◽  
Private Military Companies ◽  
Legal Complexity ◽  
Security Companies

The chapter examines the involvement of private security companies in multinational military operations. It is quite common that various tasks that are relevant to a mission’s mandate are ‘outsourced’ to private military companies and security providers. This involvement of private security providers further adds to the (legal) complexity of the mission because it brings in the legal dimension of the contracting state, the home state, and the territorial state, as well as an additional private actor. The specific focus of this chapter is on the question of how rules (and soft-law standards) applicable to private security providers interact with the legal framework and rules applicable to the mission as a whole.

Negotiating a Treaty on Business and Human Rights: The Early Stages

2017 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Humberto Cantu Rivera
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Code Of Conduct ◽  
Transnational Corporations ◽  
Early Stages ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
International Obligation ◽  
The United Nations

The idea of subjecting corporations to some sort of international obligation, particularly in the field of human rights, is not new; different processes and ways of doing this have been debated since the 1970s, when a proposed all-encompassing Code of Conduct for Transnational Corporations was pushed through the ranks of the United Nations (‘UN’) Commission on Transnational Corporations

Resolving Business and Human Rights Disputes – Is Arbitration the Way to Go?

2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 465-488
Author(s):  
Corina Vodă
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
International Business ◽  
Multinational Enterprises ◽  
National Level ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Public Consultation ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
The Hague ◽  
Rights Arbitration ◽  
Default Rules

The insufficient level of protection afforded to human rights violations caused by business-related activities of multinational enterprises has recently begun to garner increased attention. On an intergovernmental level, the elaboration of an internationally binding treaty regulating the activities of transnational corporations is underway. States have also taken initiatives on a national level to reflect their commitment in implementing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. In both respects, much work remains ahead. Against this background, a group of prominent lawyers have suggested the use of arbitration as an alternative venue for resolving business and human rights disputes. After a span over five years of concept elaboration, public consultation and drafting, the idea has materialised in the creation of the Hague Rules on Business and Human Rights Arbitration (the Hague Rules or Rules), which were officially launched on 12 December 2019. This paper aims to take stock of the proposed Rules and the context of their appearance and examine if arbitration is a suitable medium for resolving business-related human rights infringements. In doing so, it discusses the legal framework governing the confluence of business and human rights as well as the features which speak both in favor and against arbitration as a means of settling business-related human rights disputes. The provisions of the Hague Rules are addressed in detail, particularly where default rules where tailored to better respond to the needs of human rights disputes. The paper concludes with an assessment of arbitration’s potential to ensure protection and enforcement of human rights in international business and reflects whether the Rules are robust enough to empower victims in this endeavor.

scholarly journals CONSTITUTIONALLY LEGAL MECHANISM FOR ENSURING RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS OF A PERSON AND A CITIZEN: CONCEPTS AND DIRECTIONS TO ACT

2021 ◽  
pp. 6-12
Author(s):  
Yuriy Bysaga
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Fundamental Rights ◽  
Protection Mechanism ◽  
Human Rights Protection ◽  
Rights Protection ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Fundamental Rights And Freedoms ◽  
Legal Mechanism

One of the indicators of the fulfillment of international obligations by the state in the field of human rights is the perfect definition of the mechanism for ensuring the rights and freedoms of a person and a citizen. The purpose of this article is to clarify the concepts and directions of the constitutional and legal mechanism for ensuring the rights and freedoms of a person and a citizen. The methodological basis of the conducted research is the general methods of scientific cognitivism as well as concerning those used in legal science: methods of analysis and synthesis, formal logic, comparative law etc. The rights and freedoms of a person are complex. Structural elements of the human rights protection mechanism are the mechanism of legal influence in the field of human rights, the mechanism of legal regulation in the field of human rights, the legal framework of human rights, the system of human rights guarantees, and the system of human rights protection. Such legal phenomena as the mechanism of guaranteeing the fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens and the constitutional and legal mechanism of ensuring the fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens are not identical. Only the mechanism of guaranteeing the fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens contains both social and legal conditions and means that ensure the realization, protection and security of citizens' rights and freedoms. The definition of the concept of constitutional and legal mechanism for ensuring the rights and freedoms of a person and a citizen has been clarified: this is the system of organizational and legal and legal means of influence, through which opportunities for the implementation of rights and freedoms of a person and a citizen are created, and in case of violation or threat of violation, their protection is exercised by the bodies which are not vested with jurisdiction and the protection of bodies vested with jurisdiction. The main activities of this mechanism are embodied into the forms of ensuring the constitutional rights and freedoms of a person and a citizen: ensuring the implementation, protection and security of these rights and freedoms

scholarly journals Fixing Meanings in Global Governance?

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 628-649
Author(s):  
David Jason Karp
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Global Governance ◽  
The Other ◽  
Missed Opportunities ◽  
High Profile ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Human Rights Council ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Positive Action ◽  
Critical Literature

Abstract This article uses snapshots, rather than the ongoing flows of diffusion/contestation typically emphasized by constructivists, to explore the exercise of power through normative change. Its case is a high-profile Human Rights Council initiative: the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGP s). These UNGP s have successfully presented meanings as fixed while actually stretching those meanings’ boundaries. They reconceptualize what it means to “respect” and “protect” human rights. This is surprising given that the principles were framed as a conservative exercise at clarification, and under-noticed due to the legal rather than conceptual focus of the existing critical literature. To respect human rights, according to the UNGP s, agents need to take costly positive action. Furthermore, protect obligations come before respect. These are significant innovations. On the other hand, two missed opportunities of the UNGP s are their thin harm-based foundation for respect obligations, and their state centrism about who has duties to protect.

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