Weekly Update - 20 January 2016

Tackling forced labour in global supply chains

• KnowtheChain releases pilot benchmark assessing 20 companies on transparency regarding forced labour in supply chains
• Vatican commits to ensuring its supply chains don't use forced labour as supermarkets resolve to "strive to eradicate forced labor from...value chains"
• Intl. Trade Union Confederation exposes "hidden workforce" of 116 million in 50 companies' supply chains
• Sheffield Univ. report finds supply chain audits fail to detect abuse

(Photo credit: ITUC)

• with new case profiles of lawsuits & updates to existing ones
• also available in French, Spanish & Russian
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Phil Bloomer, Executive Director, on Huffington Post (UK)

• topics to be discussed include migration, climate change, inequality & privacy rights
• Oxfam report calls for crackdown on tax dodging & higher wages for low-paid workers

Front Line Defenders

• 45% of killings were linked to defenders of environmental, land & indigenous peoples’ rights

UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative & Foley Hoag

Electronic Frontier Foundation

Paul R Beckett, Quinn Legal (UK)

Amnesty Intl. & Afrewatch

• includes statements by Apple, BYD, Daimler, Dell, HP, Huawei, Lenovo (which owns Motorola Mobility), LG, Microsoft, Samsung, Sony, Vodafone, Volkswagen

Change.org; Guardian (UK)

Nyasa Times (Malawi)

Swedwatch

• statement by Scania provided (only in Swedish)
• we invited Latin American companies in the consortium to respond - Camargo Correa, Conconcreto & Empresas Públicas de Medellín (EPM) responded; Coninsa-Ramón H did not respond

Bursor & Fisher; Guardian (UK)

Guardian (UK)

Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development & Intl. Service for Human Rights (ISHR)

Myanmar Times; Greater Mekong Subregion Core Environment Program, Asian Development Bank

• impact assessments to focus on project transparency & stakeholder acceptance

Institute for Global Labour and Human Rights

• we invited the companies to respond - Disney, Mattel & Tai Nam Industrial responses provided; we will indicate whether Hasbro responds in a future Update

BBC

Frontier Myanmar; Myanmar Times; Mizzima (Myanmar)

• locals file complaint with SEZ Committee; concerns include lack of transparency in bidding process, land rights, benefits for locals

BBC; Independent (UK)

Guardian (UK)

CNN

Human Rights Watch

• report recommends for businesses to stop operating in, financing, servicing, or trading with Israeli settlements in order to comply with human rights responsibilities
• includes statements by companies mentioned in the report such as Heidelberg Cement & RE/MAX

• discussion on rights & working conditions in So. Africa (29 Jan, London)
• legal training on business & human rights (6-7 Feb, London)
• lessons from Bodo Community v Shell litigation (16 Feb, Oxford)
• human rights law & the extractive industries (18-19 Feb, Panama City)
• business & responsible taxation webinar (18 Feb, online)

• Access Now (European Policy Manager)
• Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (Postdoctoral/Associate Research Scholar)
• CORE (Communications & Advocacy Intern)
• MSI Integrity (2 posts: Program Associate; Program Director)
• Office of the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner (2 posts: Communications Officer; Senior Research Officer)