Human Rights assessment in Philip Morris International

The Danish Institute for Human Rights ends engagement with Philip Morris International.

In September of last year, the Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR) began work to carry out a human rights assessment in tobacco company Philip Morris International (PMI). Such an assessment has not until now been conducted by a tobacco company. This work has now been completed and we have decided to end our engagement with PMI.

Applying UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights to tobacco

The United Nations Human Rights Council has endorsed the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) that apply to all companies including tobacco companies. The Human Rights Council has expressed its authoritative expectation that all companies exercise due diligence in the efforts to respect human rights. According to the UNGPs companies should avoid causing or contributing to adverse impacts on human rights. Where such impacts occur, companies should immediately cease the actions that cause or contribute to the impacts. Tobacco is deeply harmful to human health, and there can be no doubt that the production and marketing of tobacco is irreconcilable with the human right to health. For the tobacco industry, the UNGPs therefore require the cessation of the production and marketing of tobacco.

We hope our input will enable PMI to better understand how the corporate responsibility to respect human rights applies to their business and take the necessary action.

Enhancing global efforts against tobacco

We support the many efforts undertaken by a wide variety of actors to improve the right to health by ending the production, marketing and consumption of tobacco in line with the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). We fully support the FCTC as the key instrument for discouraging the production, marketing and consumption of tobacco, and for preventing the use of corporate social responsibility strategies to legitimise tobacco companies.

We respect and share the concerns that many stakeholders have about engaging with tobacco companies, including the concern that such engagement can legitimise the industry. We further believe that a flawed application of the UNGPs by the tobacco industry could be used to legitimise the industry and thereby undermine the effectiveness of the FCTC and the credibility of the UNGPs as the authoritative global standard for preventing and addressing human rights abuses by all companies.

 

The purpose of our engagement with PMI

DIHR is an independent human rights institution mandated e.g. to promote human rights through advice to private actors. Our work with companies is carried out with the aim of achieving a positive impact on human rights and the activities are conducted in accordance with our Corporate Engagement Principles. As we described in our initial announcement, our decision to undertake this work was taken after careful consideration and acting in the best interest of human rights.

We consider the observance of the UNGPs as an important measure to enhance global efforts to end the production, marketing and consumption of tobacco in line with the FCTC. The purpose of our cooperation with Philip Morris International has therefore been to contribute to a correct application of the UNGPs in the tobacco industry. With the completion of our human rights assessment of PMI we have achieved this aim.

We welcome dialogue with all stakeholders on how implementation of the UNGPs can advance the protection of human rights including in the tobacco industry.

First edition published 04.05.17. Updated on 11.05.17.