National Action Plans: Evaluating Current Status and Charting Future Prospects for an Important New Governance Tool on Business and Human Rights

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire Methven O'Brien ◽  
Amol Mehra ◽  
Sara Blackwell ◽  
Cathrine Bloch Poulsen Hansen
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Action Plans ◽  
New Governance ◽  
Future Prospects ◽  
Business And Human Rights

scholarly journals National Action Plans: Current Status and Future Prospects for a New Business and Human Rights Governance Tool

2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 117-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire METHVEN O’BRIEN ◽  
Amol MEHRA ◽  
Sara BLACKWELL ◽  
Cathrine Bloch POULSEN-HANSEN
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Action Plans ◽  
Future Prospects ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
New Business

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.

National Action Plans on Business and Human Rights: Progress or Mirage?

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (02) ◽  
pp. 213-237 ◽  
Author(s):  
Humberto CANTÚ RIVERA
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Time Frame ◽  
Action Plans ◽  
Policy Coherence ◽  
Effective Protection ◽  
Human Rights Abuses ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Protection Of Human Rights ◽  
Phases Of Development ◽  
Key Policy

AbstractAs of October 2018, 21 states have adopted National Action Plans on Business and Human Rights (NAPs), with several more in different phases of development. This is an important political step to raise awareness of the importance of intragovernmental policy coherence and of the need to move forward to prevent human rights abuses linked to business activity. However, despite the global intergovernmental support to such policy strategies, the actual effectiveness of NAPs needs to be called into question: do they represent progress, or are they a mirage to block possible avenues of development? Currently existing NAPs have done little (yet) to ensure more effective protection in key policy areas, including trade and investment, state-owned enterprises, and particularly in relation to legislative developments and access to remedy. This contribution seeks to analyse the merits of developing NAPs, the importance of ensuring they become only the very first step towards a more effective protection of human rights, and to question whether their importance needs to be adjusted to what they really are: policy tools with limited effects and with a politically linked time frame.

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 Contours of National Action Plans on Business and Human Rights in Central and Eastern Europe

2021 ◽  
pp. 174-186
Author(s):  
Jernej Letnar Černič
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Human Dignity ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Action Plans ◽  
Human Rights Abuses ◽  
The Past ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
Wide Range

Central and Eastern Europe has been often overseen in the debates on business and humanrights. Countries in the regions share a common history, experience and culture. Human rights andfundamental freedoms were in the past systematically and generally violated. Since democratisation,countries have suffered from a wide range of related human rights abuses. Corporations in theregions have often directly and indirectly interfered with the human rights of employees and thewider communities. Business and human rights has in the past lagged behind global developmentsalso in the light of the lack of capacity and general deficient human rights situation. This articledescribes and discusses contours of the National Action Plans on Business and Human Rights of theCzech Republic, Poland, Lithuania, Georgia, Ukraine and Slovenia by examining their strengths anddeficiencies. It argues that the field of business and human rights in Central and Eastern Europe hasmade a step forward in the last decade since the adoption of the United Nations Guiding Principleson Business and Human Rights. Nonetheless, human rights should be further translated into practiceto effectively protect human dignity of rights-holders.

scholarly journals PERUSAHAAN DAN KONSERVASI KEANEKARAGAMAN HAYATI LAUT: THE RIGHT TO TOURISM vs SUSTAINABLE TOURISM

2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 125
Author(s):  
Ni Ketut Supasti Dharmawan ◽  
Made Sarjana ◽  
Putu Aras Samshitawrati
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Sustainable Tourism ◽  
Convention On Biological Diversity ◽  
Action Plans ◽  
Business And Human Rights ◽  
The Right ◽  
Model Action

Keanekaragam hayati laut dikembangkan sebagai salah satu produk dalam kegiatan kepariwisataan serta akses the right to tourism bagi wisatawan. Namun, pemenuhan hak tersebut jangan sampai  mengorbankan  sustainable tourism  bagi generasi mendatang, khususnya akses  lingkungan  sehat mata rantai ekosistem keanekaragaman hayati biota laut. Oleh karenanya, penting  mengkaji tanggungjawab perusahaan dalam usaha perlindungan dan konservasi. Metode penelitian hukum normatif digunakan untuk mengkaji Convention on Biological Diversity, UNWTO, UDHR, the GPs for Business and Human Rights, U.U. No. 5 Tahun 1990, U.U. No. 32 Tahun 2009, maupun U.U. No. 10 Tahun 2009. Perusahaan bersama dengan stakeholders lainnya bertanggungjawab mewujudkan perlindungan dan konservasi terhadap keanekaragaman biota laut.  Model Action Plans on Business and Human Rights relevan  untuk meningkatkan tanggung jawab perusahaan dalam perlindungan dan konservasi keanekaragaman hayati laut. 

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.

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