OHCHR Presentation on Business and Human Rights

“Operationalising human rights in the private sector – what roles, priorities and strategies for NHRIs?”

The Chair of the Commission, Professor Alan Miller, delivered this presentation to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Geneva on 6 October 2009.

I would first of all like to thank the OHCHR and the International Coordinating Committee (ICC) of NHRIs for the invitation to make this presentation on behalf of the Scottish Human Rights Commission.

It is perhaps symbolic of the potential contribution of NHRIs to the global business and human rights dynamic that I find myself seated between and sharing the same concerns as two such well known NHRIs from the south – Jody Kollapen from South Africa and Omar Lacayo from Nicaruaga.

NHRIs do have the real possibilities of acting as conveners of the key actors – governments, business, investors and civic society. Mandates among NHRIs vary but can be open to a creative interpretation to enable this important role to be filled. As a member of the ICC Working Group on Business and Human Rights our Commission is currently engaged with all of our sister NHRIs to help identify how this agenda can be best progressed whilst taking into account the diversity of mandates and contexts.

As far as the Scottish Human Rights Commission is concerned our domestic mandate of the promotion of best practice in human rights is placed by us within the context of the responsibilities given to us by the Paris Principles for NHRIs and the international human rights law framework.

The centre of gravity for all actors related to business and human rights, not only we NHRIs, is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as the foundation of modern international human rights law, and in particular its Article 28 which states that “Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realised”.

With this perspective our Commission is developing a human rights-based approach in all of our work relating to business and human rights. This approach includes the principles of empowerment of rights-holders and accountability of duty-bearers as well as facilitating all actors meeting their shared responsibilities.

It is within this broad approach that the Ruggie framework of “protect, respect and remedy”, which we are all examining at this consultation, can be a very useful reference point, not least because of the traction it has gained among all actors, including the Human Rights Council.

NHRIs are able to engage with all actors, referring to the Ruggie framework, in a variety of ways.

For our Commission this can include working with our home government agencies ensuring that human rights guidance is given to home-based businesses operating abroad, working with businesses to provide “know-how” tools and practices to enable them to operationalise their responsibility to respect human rights and working with victims to seek resolution of disputes with businesses. Most important of all is our work to increase public understanding of the duties of the government and the responsibilities of business to respect human rights.

We have two broader and particular strategic priorities.

The first is climate justice and the identification of the common framework of shared responsibilities - including the responsibilities of business as well as the opportunities for businesses to be part of a global solution.

The second is public procurement and seeking the integration of human rights criteria and standards into the process governing the contracting of the delivery of public services. This extends the reach of the business responsibility to respect human rights beyond multinational companies and into the ambit of small and medium sized businesses which dominate our national economies.

I thank you for your attention and look forward to exchanging experiences and sharing ideas with you.