Bishops' statement: Now more than ever, we need mandatory supply chain due diligence to stop corporate abuse and guarantee global solidarity
With the outbreak of Covid-19, humanity faces an unprecedented global crisis...
As Bishops, we feel we have a moral and spiritual obligation to speak about the urgency of reordering the priorities during and in the aftermath of this crisis.
[T]he United Nations, the European Union and states have a unique opportunity to step up...
We call on all governments to uphold their obligations under international law to protect human rights and prevent corporate abuses. In that sense we welcome ... the announcement by the EU Commissioner for Justice of mandatory and robust legislation...
We believe the laws can succeed in bringing tangible change to communities if they also include enhanced access to judicial remedy for victims, in order to comply with states’ duty to protect against corporate human rights abuses such as land grabbing, the killing of human rights defenders, forced and child labour, gender-based violence, and environmental degradation and deforestation.
Accordingly, all states should also ensure their constructive and active participation in the UN negotiations for a legally binding instrument to regulate, in international human rights law, the activities of transnational corporations and other business enterprises...
The coronavirus crisis should be taken as an opportunity to start a just transition and to put in place a new economic system that serves people and the planet first.