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Weekly Update - 27 July 2016
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Report links financial sector to human rights abuses of asylum-seekers in Australia's offshore detention centres
Get Up (No Business in Abuse) & Human Rights Law Centre; Guardian (UK)
- report highlights role of banks & shareholders; responses by BBVA, BNP Paribas, Royal Bank of Scotland; further banks named in report
- Ferrovial acquired company managing detention centre in May; says it will not bid for new contract in 2017
- UN reports have condemned abuses in detention centres including beatings, violence, sexual abuse, arbitrary & indefinite detention
(photo credit: Adam J.W.C.) |
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From Business & Human Rights Resource Centre |
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World Bank publishes new draft of social & environmental policy framework; civil society raises concerns about inadequate human rights protections
Group of African civil society organizations; Forest Peoples Programme; Human Rights Watch
- incl. concerns around indigenous peoples' rights, land rights, free prior & informed consent
US exempts companies investing under USD 5 million in Myanmar from mandatory reporting on their approach to human rights
Intl. Corporate Accountability Roundtable, US Campaign for Burma, NYU Stern Center, Amnesty Intl. USA, Investors Against Genocide, AFL-CIO, Global Witness, EarthRights Intl.; Frontier Myanmar
- NGOs write to US Govt. in opposition to new rule
UN Special Rapporteur warns shrinking civic space threatens achieving Sustainable Development Goals
Maina Kiai, UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of assembly & association, in Foreign Policy
Overview of initiatives to integrate human rights into public procurement practices
Intl. Learning Lab on Public Procurement and Human Rights (Danish Institute for Human Rights, Harrison Institute at Georgetown Univ., Intl. Corporate Accountability Roundtable)
- includes information from 20 jurisdictions worldwide
Report analyses how free flow of data enhances trade & human rights
Institute for Human Rights and Business
adidas publishes policy on human rights defenders
adidas Group
- includes expectations for suppliers & other business partners’ actions on defenders
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Colombia: NGO report highlights environmental, human rights impacts of oil extraction on communities in Puerto Gaitan
National Observer, Intl. Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Colectivo de Abogados José Alvear Restrepo (Cajar), Escuela Nacional Sindical (Ens), Proyecto de Acompañamiento Internacional (Paso)
- community-based human rights impact assessment finds labour rights abuses, environmental damage, threats to survival of indigenous peoples, increased repression of human rights defenders
- we invited companies named in the report to respond - Pacific Exploration & Production, Ecopetrol, ISVI Ltda responded; Montajes J&M did not
- full report available in Spanish; executive summary provided in English
UK High Court finds provocative Xstrata email showing company manager's animus to community leaders to be relevant & disclosable in Peruvian human rights claim against company
Leigh Day
USA: "Just transition" framework needed to support fossil fuel industry workers in transition to a low-carbon economy
Robert Pollin & Brian Callaci, Univ. of Massachusetts Amherst, in American Prospect
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Middle East & North Africa |
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Company responses
- Telekom Austria re privacy rights in Belarus
- Pacific Exploration & Production, Ecopetrol, ISVI re impacts on communities, labour rights in Colombia
- HSBC, Inditex, Pfizer Total re Facing Finance report & rejoinder
- adidas, Birkenstock, Clarks, Deichmann, ECCO, Euro Sko, Leder Und Schuh, Lowa, Manor, Migros, Nilson re working conditions in European supply chains
- Volkswagen re alleged discrimination & labour rights abuses in Spain
Non-responses
- MTS, Turkcell re privacy rights in Belarus
- Montajes J&M re impacts on communities, labour rights in Colombia
- Ara, Bally, Camper, CCC, El Naturalista, Ferragamo, Gabor, Geox, Mango, Navyboot, Pasito-Fricker, Prada, Rieker, Tods, Vögele, Wojas re working conditions in European supply chains
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Forthcoming events:
- 6th Asia Best CSR Practices Awards 2016 (5 Aug, Singapore)
- master class: social performance in mining, oil & gas sectors (8-10 Aug, Colorado)
- "Inside the ICAR Studio" speaker series: Motoko Aizawa (24 Aug, Washington DC, online)
- workshop on inequality & human rights in global South (27 Aug - 3 Sep, Colombia)
- business course on UK Modern Slavery Act (12 Sep, London)
Details of these and other events further in the future can be found here. Please send relevant event information to Alex Janczenia: janczenia@business-humanrights.org
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Current vacancies:
- Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (2 posts: Associate Research Scholar; Legal Researcher, Natural Resources & Sustainable Development)
- Fair Food Standards Council (3 posts: Financial Investigator; Human Rights Attorney; Human Rights Investigator)
- ICTI CARE Foundation (Engagement Executive - Europe)
- Impactt Limited (Impactt Project Officer)
- RepRisk AG (Sales Manager)
Further details and other recently posted jobs available here. To submit a new job announcement in business & human rights please go here.
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DISCLAIMER:
We take no position on views by commentators, organizations & companies in the materials in this email: http://business-humanrights.org/en/about-us/disclaimer
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