A RECORDING OF THIS SESSION IS AVAILABLE HERE. Session organized by the Permanent Mission of Ecuador to the United Nations Office and Other International Organizations at Geneva (Chair-Rapporteur of the OEIGWG)This session will be held in English only
Brief description of the session:
The Open-ended intergovernmental Working Group (OEIGWG) was established by the HRC Resolution 26/9 of June 2014, with the concrete mandate “
to elaborate an international legally binding instrument on transnational corporations and other business enterprises with respect to Human Rights”. Since 2015, the Working Group has held six sessions, with the participation of States and other relevant stakeholders.
In the last 3 years (4th, 5th and 6th session), this process has incorporated a new pragmatic and inclusive approach in full synergy with other existing frameworks. In that sense, in spite of the remaining different views and assessments regarding certain provisions of the
Second Revised Draft of the legally binding instrument, it is clear that the significant improvements introduced in the text, encouraged States and other relevant stakeholders to participate in the 6th session of the OEIGWG that took place from 26-30 October, 2020, and to present comments and proposals on the provisions of the draft treaty.
The future legally binding instrument (LBI) and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) can and should be complementary and mutually reinforcing. All the advances and legal and regulatory initiatives registered in recent times, as well as those in the process of elaboration, are a clear demonstration that non-binding standards on business and human rights can and need to be complemented with binding norms, in order to reach more efficiently the common objective of strengthening the protection of human rights in this area.
Key objectives of the session:
The session aims to:
- Facilitate the stock-taking and lesson-sharing between governments and other relevant actors, on how the two processes mentioned above, can benefit and strengthen each other, in light of the conclusions and recommendations of the 6th session of the Working Group, and the concrete recent legal developments, trends, challenges and good practices in preventing and addressing business-related human rights impacts at all levels.
- Explore the opportunities provided by the LBI to make concrete progress towards the protection of human rights in the business sector, improved accountability and more effective remedies for victims, as well as to strengthen the complementary implementation of the UNGPs.
Key questions:- How can the future LBI and the implementation of the UNGPs promote and facilitate the respect, promotion and fulfillment of human rights by all business enterprises?
- What measures should business enterprises take to address future pandemics and ensure full respect for human rights?
- Why is mutual legal assistance and international cooperation critical in the field of business and human rights?
- In terms of process, how could States, NHRIs, businesses, CSOs and experts contribute constructively to build consensus around the third revised text of the LBI?
Background to the discussion:
Ecuador, in its capacity of Chairpersonship of the OEIGWG, has submitted the Zero Draft in 2018, the Revised Draft (Rev.1) in 2019 and the Second Revised Draft (Rev.2) in 2020. The Rev.2 sought to further align its provisions with existing instruments and frameworks, such as the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the ILO Tripartite Declaration on Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy, and other relevant ILO instruments, as well as the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, among others, under a pragmatic and progressive approach.
The 6th session concluded with the adoption of the recommendations of the Chair-Rapporteur and the conclusions of the Working Group, which included inter alia, the invitation to States and other relevant stakeholders to fill, no later than February 2021, two matrix templates to be circulated by the Secretariat, reflecting: 1. concrete textual suggestions, modifications, additional language, requests for deletions, as well as expressions of support on the current provisions of the second revised draft; and 2. general comments and requests of clarification. It should be noted that these two matrices will be compiled and distributed by the Secretariat no later than the end of March 2021. In addition, the Chair-Rapporteur is requested to prepare a third revised draft by the end of July 2021, to serve as the basis for substantive intergovernmental negotiations led by States on the preparation of a fourth draft during the 7th session of the OEIGWG.
The full report and the links to the webcast and documents of the 6th and previous sessions can be found at
https://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/WGTransCorp/Pages/IGWGOnTNC.aspx
