27 February 2020

ANZ has agreed to provide a financial package to Cambodian families forcibly displaced by a sugar company the Australian bank loaned money to in 2011. By agreeing to contribute the money that it earned from the loan to the families, ANZ has set a human rights precedent for the global banking sector. The money will help to alleviate the hardships faced by some 1,200 affected families, who have been struggling for years after losing their land and livelihoods.

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"This agreement sets an important precedent for the banking industry, and we welcome ANZ's leadership in this regard," said Natalie Bugalski, Legal Director of Inclusive Development International. "Going forward, all banks should recognize that they can't look the other way when they loan money to corporations that abuse people's rights and cause harm. If a bank contributes to adverse human rights impacts through its lending activities, it has a responsibility to contribute to a remedy."

In a joint statement issued by the three parties to the resolution, ANZ "acknowledges that its due diligence on the project funded by its loan was inadequate and recognizes the hardships faced by the affected communities."[...]

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The Australian National Contact Point, which facilitated the negotiations, praised the agreement in an accompanying statement. "Where a company has gained revenue in a manner inconsistent with the OECD Guidelines, and that has resulted in parties being impacted, the payment of the revenues to those parties may be one way a company can comply with the requirements of the OECD Guidelines," the government body noted.

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As part of the resolution, ANZ also agreed to review and strengthen its human rights policies, including its customer social and environmental screening processes and grievance mechanism.[...]

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