Talks on business and human rights treaty begin

Building international consensus for human rights and business
Intergovernmental working group meets for the first time today in Geneva to start elaborating an international legally binding instrument on human rights and business.

The Open-Ended Intergovernmental Working Group on Transnational Corporations and Other Business Enterprises with Respect to Human Rights (IGWG) was established in June 2014 by the Human Rights Council resolution 26/9 to elaborate an international legally binding instrument on human rights and business. The working group meets for the first time in Geneva today.

The International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (ICC) issued a statement expressing the willingness of NHRIs to participate constructively in the process.

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The ICC highlighted its continuous support for the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights and the need for implementation of the UNGPs through in particular the adoption of National Action Plans.

The ICC further called for broadening the discussion to include not only transnational corporations but the broad range of business enterprises operating domestically. The ICC also encouraged the IGWG to adopt a process which is transparent, inclusive, and participatory for all stakeholders.

In March 2015, the Danish Institute for Human Rights together with the ICC and the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) hosted a conference for NHRIs on Legal Accountability of Business for Human Rights Impacts.

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