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Article

13 Oct 2016

Author:
Friends of the Earth Europe

Citizens call for rights for people and rules for business

90,000 citizens called on the European Union to support a binding treaty on business and human rights...and to participate in international discussion on the issue in Geneva on the 24th October.  The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), meeting this month, is developing a set of legally-binding rules for transnational corporations in relation to human rights known as "the UN treaty".  This treaty could protect people from human rights abuses by corporations and bring corporate actors to justice, according to the organisations.  Anne Van Schaik, corporate accountability campaigner for Friends of the Earth Europe said: "90,000 citizens across Europe want human rights to be put before corporate rights.  Last year 185 people died defending their land, forests and rivers against destructive industries.  The European Union must engage in the international "UN Treaty" process that could hold transnational corporations and other business enterprises to account for corporate abuses"...The European Union has an unprecedented opportunity to put human rights before corporate rights by participating in discussions around a "UN Treaty", according to the organisations.