India's Bharat Heavy Electricals has been excluded from the investment portfolio of Norway's $935-billion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, the Norwegian central bank said on Friday.
The fund is not allowed to invest in companies that breach certain ethical guidelines, such as producing nuclear weapons, tobacco or antipersonnel landmines, or pose risk of severe environmental damage, among other criteria.
Two other companies, PetroChina and Leonardo , have been put under observation on ethical grounds and may be excluded at a later stage if no improvements are made.
Separately, the fund will follow Italy's Eni and Saipem though active ownership the central bank said.
↧
Norway's wealth fund excludes Bharat Heavy Electricals from investments based on it's assessment of risk to environment.
↧
Globalisierung und G20-Gipfel: Unternehmen müssen Teil der Problemlösung sein
...Von der Zivilgesellschaft und den Gewerkschaften wurden die G20-Staaten bereits dazu aufgerufen, menschenrechtlicher Sorgfalt in globalen Lieferketten umfassend zu behandeln. Nun schließt sich die Wirtschaft diesem Aufruf an. Die Veranstaltung fand darüber hinaus termingerecht vor dem Treffen der Arbeitsminister der G20, das in weniger als zwei Wochen zusammenkommen, statt. Die Bundesregierung hat bereits versichert, das Thema nachhaltige weltweite Lieferketten während des G20-Gipfels in den Blick zu nehmen. Dies steht in Einklang mit den Forderungen der deutschen G7-Präsidentschaft im Jahr 2015, bei dessen Gipfel die Regierungen der sieben größten Wirtschaftsstaaten sich verpflichteten bessere Arbeitsbedingungen zu schaffen, indem Transparenz, Risikovorsorge und der Zugang zu Rechtsmitteln sowie privatwirtschaftliche Verantwortung für Menschenrechte verstärkt werden sollen. Interessenvertreter verschiedener Konzerne und Unternehmensgruppen zeigten sich zuversichtlich, dass der G20-Gipfel 2017 das Thema nachhaltige Lieferketten fördern wird, und dass Staaten zunehmend eine kohärentere Politikentwickeln werden, um den Unternehmen diesbezüglich künftig einen besseren Rahmen bieten zu können...
↧
↧
Globalization & the G20: Business needs to be part of the solution
...As business joins civil society and labor in calling on the G20 to address due diligence in global supply chains, it is now up to the G20 countries to respond. With the G20 Labor and Employment Ministerial meeting less than two weeks out, the event was a timely one. The German government has been outspoken in its commitment to addressing sustainable global supply chains during this year’s G20 process. This follows from the German G7 Presidency in 2015, which saw governments from the world’s seven largest economies commit to promoting better working conditions through increased transparency, risk prevention, access to remedy, and private sector implementation of human rights due diligence. Stakeholders from across the global and engagement groups are all hopeful that the 2017 G20 will produce strong commitments to increasing the sustainability of global supply chains, and establish policy coherence to better guide business...
↧
Bangladesh Rejects Greenpeace Study on Power-Plant Project
Bangladesh will go ahead with building a massive coal-fired power plant despite a new report by environmental watchdog Greenpeace warning that some 6,000 people will die prematurely over a 40-year period from health problems caused by project-related pollution. The 1,320-megawatt plant that will be constructed on the edge of the Sundarbans, the world’s largest mangrove forest, threatens to harm public health and could damage the environmentally sensitive region in southwestern Bangladesh, Greenpeace said in the report...The Greenpeace report, prepared by coal and air pollution specialist Lauri Myllyvirta, said emissions from the plant in Rampal would increase the risk of stroke, lung cancer, heart and breathing problems in adults, as well as respiratory symptoms in children...The plant is projected to discharge about 125,000 cubic meters of chemically tainted water every day into nearby water catchments, Greenpeace said.
↧
Iran Guards look beyond election to next supreme leader
Determined to protect a dominant security role and vast economic interests, Iran's Revolutionary Guards military force is quietly backing a hardliner in May 19 presidential polls, with an eye toward a bigger prize: the succession of the supreme leader.
President Hassan Rouhani, a relative moderate elected in 2013 in a landslide on promises to open up Iranian society and reduce its international isolation, is widely seen as the favorite to win a second term next week.
But the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), and the Basij, a volunteer militia under the Guards' command, are taking steps to promote the candidacy of his main rival, hardline cleric Ebrahim Raisi.
↧
↧
Citi Response re: Dakota Access Pipeline
We have engaged for the last seven months with Rainforest Action Network and a number of other stakeholders, as well as the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, regarding the project. In response to these concerns, we periodically posted public comments on the developments related to the project on our Citi blog, beginning on November 6, 2016. This was followed with further communications to various stakeholders that we also publicly posted (see here for links to these previous statements [including Citi’s Letter to Investors Regarding the Dakota Access Pipeline, 7 Mar 2017]). We included a case study on the project in our 2016 Corporate Citizenship report (p. 45) published on April 24, 2017.
Today, we issued a further public statement discussing ongoing enhancements to our policies regarding engagement of Indigenous Peoples in developed countries (see here). We would also like to share with you the public summary of a report authored by the law firm Foley Hoag, who we retained jointly with TD Bank on behalf of the banks that financed DAPL, on the gaps between U.S. law and international industry good practice on engagement of Indigenous Peoples around pipeline developments (see here).
↧
“Indagan ataque a indígenas en Itakyry”
9 de mayo de 2017
El Ministerio Público inició investigaciones sobre el ataque a parte de una comunidad nativa de Itakyry, Alto Paraná. Datos preliminares señalan que algunos indígenas habrían arrendando las tierras. Guardias de la Industria Paraguaya de Alcoholes (Inpasa) atacaron la zona y derribaron casas y escuelas…Adolfo Santander, fiscal de Minga Porã, será el encargado de las investigaciones en representación del Ministerio Público. El agente del Ministerio Público se constituyó al sitio para recolectar evidencias…Se incautó una camioneta, cartuchos de escopeta, registros fotográficos y además se recolectó testimonios…El abogado Reinaldo Lugo, representante de un grupo de nativos de la parcialidad Avá Guaraní, dijo que ampliará una denuncia contra el letrado Marcos Torales quien sería el propulsor del acuerdo con los nativos y la empresa, informó el corresponsal de Última Hora Édgar Medina…Los denunciantes acusan a funcionarios de la empresa Impasa de haber destruido una escuela pública y viviendas, luego de que un grupo de nativos haya sido reubicado en otra comunidad de la localidad de Yvyrarovana, departamento de Canindeyú.
↧
Garment factories in southern India are hiring migrants
"Locals have become too aware of their rights’: Why Bengaluru garment factories are hiring migrants", www.scroll.in, 10 May 2017
All the young women in the hostel...share a rural, poverty-ridden past and an unflinching hope for prosperity through hard work. Today in Bengaluru, they are sought by garment factories that are increasingly recruiting women from far-flung districts through agencies...About 80% of garment workers in Bengaluru have always been from rural areas, but now there are more interstate migrations...manufacturers are today actively seeking workers from central and eastern India – the low GDP, largely tribal, non-industrialised states...Manufacturers also cite another reason why they prefer migrants: a perennial labour shortage...Locals have become too aware of their rights – there are questions, disruptions, unions,” said a human resources manager for a major exporter....Non-local Odia, Assamese speaking migrants can’t do this...recent surveys and research on migrant workers have shown that a poorer, younger, locally unmoored workforce, especially in an industry not known for its transparency, is immensely vulnerable to exploitation. Abuses range from being misled about wages, Provident Fund deductions and hostel payments, to forced overtime, years of confinement and sexual harassment.
↧
Bangladesh: Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh releases its aggregated quarterly report on remediation progress at apparel factories covered
Four years on, the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh takes stock of significant improvements and unresolved safety hazards at garment factories in Bangladesh. Entering the final year of the current agreement, a direct financial support program is launched to help factories complete remediation...looking beyond 2018, apparel brands and retailers and unions are in discussions on how to best ensure that safety regulations and safety rights in the RMG industry in Bangladesh are adequately upheld and further developed...key milestones...[include]...Remediation is close to completion at more than 400 Accord factories which have completed more than 90% of the remediation., 65 Factories have completed all remediation from initial inspections, Over 300 joint labour-management Safety Committees are being trained and equipped to monitor factory safety on a day-to-day basis., The independent and credible Accord safety complaints mechanism has resolved more than 90 safety complaints from workers and their representatives.
↧
↧
General Electric did not respond
↧
Dongfang Electric did not respond
↧
IFFCO did not respond
↧
Actualités Hebdo 10 mai 2017 : Adoption d'un plan national d'action entreprises et droits de l'homme
Vous trouverez ici un aperçu des meilleurs articles et des sujets brûlants relatifs aux entreprises et aux droits de l'homme. Avec les réponses des entreprises aux allégations ainsi que des annonces pertinentes.
Lire les Actualités en entier
Archives des « Actualités Hebdomadaires »
Souscrire aux « Actualités Hebdomadaires »
↧
↧
Brazil: ILO partners with textile sector, including Zara, to promote decent work
“ILO partners with São Paulo textile sector to promote decent work”, 4 May 2017
[On 4 May]…the International Labour Organization (ILO), Brazilian Association of Textile Retail (ABVTEX), Brazilian Association of Textile Industry (Abit), Instituto C&A (the Brazilian office of C&A Foundation), Instituto Lojas Renner and Zara Brazil announced a partnership to promote decent work in the textile and apparel sector of São Paulo…[T]he initiative “Improving working conditions and management capabilities of sewing shops in São Paulo”…[to]…raise rights awareness and empower populations vulnerable that work in sewing shops, raise risks awareness and do management training for sewing shop owners (especially micro, small and medium enterprises), and build the capacities of institutions at federal, state and local levels for to develop and implement policies to improve working conditions in sewing shops, especially focusing on migrant workers. Over the past years in Brazil, more and more emphasis has been placed on dealing with these issues given the arrival of a growing number of migrants from other Latin American countries and African countries. Besides labour exploitation, the lack of proper occupational safety and health conditions is a serious problem in irregular and informal sewing shops…Click here to download the official press release from the ILO.
↧
France : Succès des produits dont le prix est défini par les consommateurs pour offrir une rémunération juste aux producteurs
« "C'est qui le patron?!" : quand les consommateurs décident du prix juste », 10 mai 2017
Six mois après sa création, la marque des consommateurs "C’est qui le patron?!" a transformé l'essai. 10 millions de litres de son lait équitable, dont le prix est défini par les consommateurs pour offrir une rémunération juste aux producteurs, ont été vendus. Fort de ce succès, la marque lance un jus de pomme et des pizzas...[Lire la suite : http://www.novethic.fr/empreinte-terre/agriculture/isr-rse/c-est-qui-le-patron-quand-les-consommateurs-creent-des-produits-responsables-144387.html] [Fait référence à Auchan, Carrefour, Casino, Colruyt, Cora, Intermarché, Lidl]
↧
Hungary: Multinational corporations only key players still silent on Orban's assault on independent academia, civil society & media
"It’s time for international investors to speak up about Hungary’s assault on democracy", 18 Apr 2017
Earlier this month, German President...warned against an assault on civil society and academic freedom in the heart of Europe. “Europe must raise its voice,” he declared. He was referring...to the predicament of the Central European University (CEU) in Budapest... Hungarian parliament passed a law with the sole purpose of driving CEU...out of the country... His latest move has earned Orban strong criticism... The U.S. government has come out strongly against [it]... German Chancellor Angela Merkel... [has] harshly criticized him.The only key players to have remained silent are the many European and U.S. multinational corporations — such as Audi, Daimler and General Electric...factories, research and development centers, and logistics hubs [of which] form the backbone of Hungary’s economy... German companies alone employ 174,000 Hungarians... Daimler has just invested about a billion euros in a new plant in Hungary. Audi is the second-largest employer... Any slowing or interruption of Audi’s production has an immediate impact on Hungarian gross domestic product. It is time for these companies to change course... Multinational corporations have a particular responsibility within the E.U... They cannot turn a blind eye when political freedom is being eroded even as they continue to benefit from the four economic freedoms of the [E.U.] common market. Foreign investors need to clearly speak up against Orban’s authoritarian agenda and his assault on independent civil society and media.
↧
Weekly Update - 10 May 2017: South African banks' role in mining impacts on human rights
Our run down of this week's top stories and breaking news about business & human rights. Includes company responses, the latest jobs; and events announcements.
READ THE FULL UPDATE
Archive of past Weekly Updates since 2005
Weekly update sign-up
↧
↧
NGO raises concern about fossil fuel business associations undermining progress at UN climate talks
"Fossil fuel lobbies cripple UN talks, says report," 2 May 2017
...A group of developing countries is calling for big polluters' lobbyists to be kicked out of upcoming talks in Bonn. According to a report by Corporate Accountability International (CAI), one group of lobbyists is more powerful than the rest: business trade associations with links to the fossil fuel industry...More than 250 business and industry nongovernmental organizations...many of which are funded by some of the world's biggest polluters and climate change deniers, lobby the UN climate negotiations and "undermine, weaken, and block progress," according to the report...The UNFCCC said the climate negotiations are a platform open to all interest groups, and rejected criticism by the CAI report...In the past, the UNFCCC has been an outspoken proponent of including the fossil fuel industry in negotiations. Christiana Figueres, former head of the UNFCCC, responded to earlier accusations with a call to "stop demonizing oil and gas companies” because "bringing them with us has more strength."...Other lobbyists, including environmental organizations, agree that the fossil fuel industry should be allowed to lobby...It's not about whether big polluter lobbyists should be allowed access but how, Gründinger [a climate protection researcher who also does lobby work] argues: "It's a question of transparency. All actors should be invited to all hearings and should be listened to equally."
↧
Event schedule: Respecting & protecting rights while combating climate change
[Includes side events on children's rights, indigenous peoples, land sector, integrating human rights in climate action after Paris]
↧
Bhopal gas tragedy: Amnesty International lobbies US on human rights issues in India
...NGO Amnesty International is lobbying with the US lawmakers to advocate for "protection of human rights defenders" in India among other countries, as also to seek "political pressure" on the American companies responsible for the Bhopal gas tragedy...It also wants the top leaders of the US and India to demonstrate "the importance of making the respect and protection of human rights an integral part of a just society". In its latest quarterly lobbying disclosure report filed with the US Senate last week, Amnesty International has listed "protection of human rights defenders" in India and several other countries among the "specific lobbying issues" for the quarter ended 31 March...Asked about the points of advocacy regarding this, Amnesty International India's Executive Director Aakar Patel said...We have worked with Indian authorities and US authorities to try to ensure that Dow Chemicals responds to the many official summons of the Bhopal court hearing this issue
↧