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See also other materials on "General business & human rights"

Major reports:

2003:

Legal Issues in Corporate Citizenship -...Mandatory legislation on various aspects of business transparency is emerging around the world. It can form part of company law, environmental regulation, or tailored legislation for institutional investors or on social and environmental reporting. Pressure for enhanced public sector accountability has also given rise to calls for company reporting on revenues paid to host government by companies in the extractive industries...A new wave of legal actions – mostly in US courts, but also in some EU countries – is testing the boundaries of existing legal principles in relation to some of the most difficult issues of the CSR agenda. For example, a series of cases in the US, France and Belgium are testing how fundamental principles of international law – particularly human rights law – apply to parent companies of multinational corporate groups. (Halina Ward, International Institute for Environment and Development, Feb. 2003)

2002:

Defining Global Business Principles: Towards a new role for investors in promoting international corporate responsibility [refers to human rights, labour issues, environmental issues; includes sections entitled "Globalisation and coporate responsibility", "Global ethical principles", "The Global Business Principles Project"]  (Dr. Craig Mackenzie, Head of Investor Responsibility, Insight Investment, Nov. 2002)

Corporate Human Rights Obligations: In Search of Accountability -...the author arrives at the conclusion that corporate human rights obligations can indeed be derived from international human rights law. (Nicola Jägers, Utrecht University, Intersentia Publishers, 2002)

CSR on the move - new report CSR on the move: new report gives first-time overview of Corporate Social Responsibility efforts throughout Europe (CSR Europe and Copenhagen Centre, 21 Nov. 2002)

• full report: CSR in Europe - Excellence report 2002 (CSR Europe and Copenhagen Centre, 21 Nov. 2002)

Spotlight on corporates reveals need for global rules - Some corporations continue to abuse the rights of people, destroy the livelihoods of communities, and pollute water and forest resources for future generations, according to a new report by Friends of the Earth International published today. The report graphically illustrates the need for governments to agree to introduce tighter rules for multinationals at the Earth Summit in Johannesburg. (Friends of the Earth, 16 Aug. 2002)

• Call for 'global enviro rules' - The environmental group, Friends of the Earth, on Friday called on world leaders meeting at the upcoming World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg to introduce global rules for business....In the report the environmental group mentions the mining giant, Rio Tinto that is prospecting for gold in the Poboya protected forest in Indonesia despite opposition from local people. South Africa's chemical company Sasol also comes under fire. (South African Press Association, 16 Aug. 2002)

• full report: Clashes with Corporate Giants: 22 campaigns for biodiversity and community (Friends of the Earth, Aug. 2002) 

includes section entitled "Towards binding corporate accountability"

also includes the following case studies:

1. Peru: Manhattan Minerals (Tambogrande gold mine)
2. Malaysia: Malaysian timber companies (logging in Sarawak - affecting indigenous peoples)
3. South Africa: Sasol, Total, Dow Chemicals (pollution of poor communities)
4. Russia/Lithuania: Lukoil (Baltic sea drilling)
5. Papua New Guinea: BHP Billiton (OK Tedi mine)
6. Chad/Cameroon: ExxonMobil, Chevron, Petronas (Chad-Cameroon oil pipeline)
7. Ecuador: AGIP, Alberta Energy, Occidental Petroleum, Perez Companc, Repsol-YPF, Techint (oil pipeline, affecting indigenous peoples)
8. Czech Republic: Ford, Nemak (car plant on agricultural land)
9. Nigeria: Shell (environmental justice issues in Niger Delta)
10. Chile: Noranda (aluminium plant)
11. Worldwide: Aventis, Monsanto (genetically modified food)
12. Colombia: Occidental Petroleum (oil extraction on land of U'wa people)
13. Australia: Barrick Gold (gold mine, affecting indigenous peoples)
14. Brazil: Petrobas, El Paso Energy (gas pipeline, affecting indigenous peoples)
15. Indonesia: Asia Pulp & Paper (logging of rainforests)
16. Chile: Nutreco (salmon farms)
17. Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey: BP (Baku-Ceyhan oil pipeline)
18. Malta: Ax Holdings, Carlson Companies, Regent Hotels (golf course on agricultural land)
19. Australia: Nihon Unipac (clearcutting Goolengook Forest)
20. Norway: Bayer, Monsanto, Kanegafuchi (Norwegian sea pollution)
21. Indonesia: Rio Tinto (gold mine, affecting indigenous peoples)
22. UK: Scott's Company (peat extraction for compost)

Human Rights and the Responsibility of Companies (ING Sustainable Growth Fund, Aug. 2002)

Beyond Good Deeds: Case Studies and a New Policy Agenda for Corporate Accountability [coverage includes oil industry & high tech industry; environment; pollution & its impact on human health; health & safety in the workplace; labour rights; security arrangements & human rights abuses; supply chain; codes of conduct; legal accountability; case studies on: Nigeria - Chevron & Shell; Azerbaijan & Kazakhstan - Unocal & Chevron; Ecuador - Occidental; Peru - Shell; Taiwan - Shengli Chemical Co.; Thailand - Seagate Technology, Advanced Micro Devices, Read-Rite, IBM, Lucent Technology, Hana Microelectronics, Philips; India; Malaysia - Seagate Technology, Agilent Technologies, Advanced Micro Devices, Intel, Dell, Fairchild Semiconductor, Integrated Device Technology, Iomega, Knowles Electronics, KOMAG USA, Linear Semiconductor, MCMS, Motorola Technology, Quantum Peripherals, Solectron Technology, Xircom Operations; Costa Rica - Intel, Romic; California] (Michelle Leighton, Naomi Roht-Arriaza & Lyuba Zarsky, California Global Corporate Accountability Project, July 2002)

Rio+10 Series: Book Review--Building Partnerships - A new book outlines the benefits and challenges of cooperation between the private sector and the United Nations. [Building Partnerships: Cooperation between the United Nations system and the private sector, published by United Nations Department of Public Information & UN Global Compact, in conjunction with Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum] (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 28 June 2002)

United Nations Reports on Growing Importance of Partnerships with Business - "Building Partnerships" Book Shows How UN System, Private Sector and Civil Society Are Working Together on Range of Critical Global Issues (U.N. Global Compact, 14 June 2002)

Multinational Enterprises in Situations of Violent Conflict and Widespread Human Rights Abuses - This report considers the challenges of conducting business responsibly in countries characterised by civil strife and extensive human rights violations. It focuses particularly on extractive industry companies and documents the search for solutions. [includes reference to oil/gas and mining industries; Burma, Nigeria, Angola, Chad, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo, Colombia, Indonesia, Sudan] (Kathryn Gordon, OECD, May 2002)

• {···français} Les entreprises multinationales dans des situations de conflits violents et de violations généralisées des droits de l’homme (Kathryn Gordon, OCDE, mai 2002)

Business and Human Rights: Policy commitments and disclosure in the extractive sector [A comparison of policies and practices on human rights issues from seven multinational extractive companies: BG, BP, BHP Billiton, BOC, Premier Oil, Rio Tinto, Shell] (Lucy Amis & Dave Prescott, International Business Leaders Forum, Apr. 2002)

Whose Business? A Handbook on Corporate Responsibility for Human Rights and the Environment -...Produced primarily for use by North American educators, students, and activists...The central theme of this handbook is that the institutions and regulatory frameworks now governing the global economy have not adequately protected human rights, the environment, and labor rights. (California Global Corporate Accountability Project, Mar. 2002)

Business & Human Rights: A geography of corporate risk - Amnesty International and The Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum (IBLF) have collaborated to produce a series of seven detailed world maps, which depict where human rights abuses and violations exist and where leading North American and European multinational companies are at risk of being associated with them. The suite of maps covers the extractive, food and beverages, pharmaceutical and chemical, infrastructure and utilities, heavy manufacturing and defence, and IT Hardware and telecommunications sectors. (Amnesty International UK, and Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum, Feb. 2002)

Beyond Voluntarism: Human rights and the developing international legal obligations of companies [full report, and summary] (International Council on Human Rights Policy, Jan. 2002)

• {···español} Más allá de lo discrecional: Los derechos humanos y la emergencia de obligaciones legales internacionales para las empresas: Resumen

• {···français} au-delà du volontarisme: Les droits humains et les obligations émergentes des entreprises en droit international: Résumé

2001:

new book: Commercial Law and Human Rights (edited by Stephen Bottomley [The Australian National University] and David Kinley [Monash University, Australia], Nov. 2001)

Cooperation between the United Nations and all relevant partners, in particular the private sector (United Nations [drafted by Jane Nelson, a public policy specialist with the Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum], 28 Aug. 2001)

Danish Center for Human Rights - Human Rights & Business project 

• Our research: What's it about? [includes report: Human Rights and Business, Danish Centre for Human Rights/Confederation of Danish Industries/Industrialization Fund for Developing Countries)]
• What are companies´ responsibilities for human rights abroad? [includes report: Defining the Scope of Business Responsibility for Human Rights Abroad, Danish Centre for Human Rights/Confederation of Danish Industries/Industrialization Fund for Developing Countries)]
• Should companies do business in states with bad governments? [includes report: Deciding Whether to do Business in States with Bad Governments (Margaret Jungk, Danish Centre for Human Rights/Confederation of Danish Industries/Industrialization Fund for Developing Countries, 2001)]
• Tools for teaching about human rights and business

Business and Human Rights (Human Rights Watch, Human Rights Watch World Report 2001, 2001)

2000:

Human rights -- is it any of your business? [A management primer] (Amnesty International UK Business Group / Prince of Wales Business Leaders Forum, Apr. 2000)                           

• A call to put social issues on the corporate agenda [article about Human rights -- is it any of your business?] (Alan Cowell, New York Times, 6 April 2000)

Business and Human Rights in a Time of Change (web version: Christopher Avery, Nov. 1999; paper version: Christopher Avery/Amnesty International UK Section, Feb. 2000)

1998:

Globalization and the Rule of Law (Andrew Clapham, 1998)

1997:

Business and Human Rights: An Interdisciplinary Discussion Held at Harvard Law School in December 1997 (organised by Harvard Law School Human Rights Program, and Lawyers Committee for Human Rights)