Weekly Update - 17 February 2016

Guatemala: Allegations of abuses against community members opposing hydroelectric projects
 

(Photo credit: Prensa Comunitaria Guatemala; Misión Ríos Vivos)

Centro de Medios Independientes

• we invited Solel Boneh (part of Shikun & Binui) to respond; response provided
• full article only available in Spanish; English summary provided

Julian Burger, Monica Feria-Tinta & Claire McGregor

• notes concerns about land rights, free, prior & informed consent, criminalisation of protesters & potential impacts of dams on communities' livelihood
• we invited America Trans Group to respond; response provided (only in Spanish)

• focuses on recent changes to measurements & indicators

UN Global Compact and Business & Human Rights Resource Centre

Institute for Human Rights and Business

Amnesty Intl., Global Witness & civil society coalition partners

• Enough Project says US conflict minerals legislation reduced violence in Dem. Rep. of Congo, but more company action is needed

Stylist (UK)

Dhananjayan Sriskandarajah, CIVICUS

• recommends 3 areas for company action: easing restrictions on intl. funding, protecting open access in cyberspace, addressing global inequality

Irit Tamir & Judy Beals, Oxfam America

Fifth Estate

CNBC Africa; Bloomberg Business

Kenya Commercial Bank Group, on Capital FM (Kenya)

The Economist

Leonardo Sakamoto (Brazil)

• includes company comments; articles only available in Portuguese

AIDA

• NGO says ruling "should serve as an example for other countries in the region"

UN Working Group on business & human rights

• journalists & community members raised concerns about mine's environmental impacts & access to water
• defamation charges infringe on freedom of expression, says Fortify Rights

Guardian (UK); South China Morning Post

• centre helped migrant workers & female engineers forced to retire earlier than male counterparts among others

New York Times; United Daily News

InterAksyon (Philippines)

Guardian (UK)

Independent (UK)

Thyssenkrupp

John Morrison, Institute for Human Rights and Business

Doha News (Qatar)

• see also: full case profile

• labour standards, trafficking & supply chain management (18 Feb, online)
• human rights law & the extractive industries (18-19 Feb, Panama City)
• debate: is a binding treaty a good or bad idea? (19 Feb, Johannesburg)
• how emerging technologies can support human rights (23 Feb, Berkeley)
• GreenBiz 2016 (23-25 Feb, Phoenix)
• discussion on disability & ethical trade (25 Feb, London)

• 11th Hour Project (Program Manager, Human Rights Program)
• China Labor Watch (Program Assistant)
• FACT Coalition (Executive Director)
• Global Justice Now (Campaign & Policy Assistant)
• Intl. Alert (2 posts: Advocacy & Communications Advisor, DRC (maternity cover);
  Senior Programme Design & Assessment Officer, Eurasia Programme)
• Oxfam GB (Programme Researcher on Economics & Gender Justice)