Business and industry cannot ignore human rights violations: envoy
By Bridget Di Certo
October 27, 2013
Investors looking to ride the wave of Myanmar’s burgeoning economy should not ignore the human rights impact of their activities, a United Nations official warned in a report to the General Assembly on October 24.
In his latest report on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, special rapporteur for human rights in Myanmar Tomas Quintana highlighted the potentially dire consequences if businesses ignore the government’s failure to address the most profound human rights abuses in the country.
“If these shortcomings are not addressed now, they will become increasingly entrenched in areas such as accountability for human rights violations; the rights of ethnic and religious minorities; the rights to peaceful assembly and association; the representation of women in decision-making positions; land rights; and human rights and development,” the Argentine lawyer wrote in his report’s preface.
The UN-appointed official underscored the responsibility of all investors and businesses in Myanmar to abide by the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, a framework adopted by the Human Rights Council in a resolution spearheaded by Argentina, India, Nigeria, Norway and Russia.
That 2011 resolution outlines the three pillars of doing business internationally: The duty of a state to protect against human rights abuses, the corporate responsibility to respect human rights, and victims’ access to effective judicial and non-judicial remedies.
In his report, which heavily focused on communal unrest in Rakhine State, Mr Quintana urged that “investors and businesses carry out human rights impact assessments before the start of projects” in Myanmar.
The guiding principles place an obligation on business enterprises to “act with due diligence to avoid infringing on the rights of others and to address adverse impacts with which they are involved”.
The special rapporteur’s report highlights the prevalence of child labour, forced evictions and arbitrary arrests – human rights abuses that could negatively impact a corporation’s reputation both in Myanmar and internationally.
The chief executive officer of Myanmar-based business consulting agency Thura Swiss, U Aung Thura, told The Myanmar Times that isolated incidents of unrest or violence were unlikely to deter investors but they would be more concerned about activities that could potentially damage their corporation’s reputation.
“Myanmar has only just emerged from sanctions. Companies will be careful about their reputation and may pull out because of reputation [damage],” he said. “We should see more due diligence in Myanmar than other countries that are already well-researched.”
Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) economic researcher U Khine Tun likewise said he believed it was unlikely reports of ongoing human rights abuses in the country would directly discourage foreign direct investment (FDI).
“Instead, [FDI] will [help] prevent exploitation and abuse,” U Khine Tun said in an email to The Myanmar Times.
The arrival in Myanmar of sophisticated international corporations with hard-won reputations to protect - and shareholders to please - could cultivate a more protected labour force.
Complex insurance calculations could be inflated by high degrees of risk in a country, and incoming investors would seek to minimise risk for both financial and reputation damage, U Khine Tun said.
“The government cannot terminate such unrest, at least in the short run, but has to guarantee [unrest is] not harmful to investments. Such a guarantee can reduce the degree of risk defined by investors,” he said.
However, Mr Quintana warned against corporate ambivalence to human rights.
“The Special Rapporteur highlights … the dangers of glossing over shortcomings in the area of human rights or presuming that these shortcomings will inevitably be addressed through the momentum of current reforms.
“The challenge from the outset has been to achieve a transition from the military mindset that prevails within the Government to a democratic mindset that upholds human rights.
“It is this change that will bring about successful national reconciliation and ensure a tolerant society that does not tackle problems through violence and upholds the rights of all ethnic and religious groups in Myanmar.”
