"Statement by Civil Society regarding Japan’s National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights", 23 Jan 2020

...BHR-NAP Platform [Civil Society Platform for Japan’s National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights ]has, together with other stakeholder organisations, participated in the formulation process, so as to ensure that the voice of civil society is at the core of the NAP...

...BHR-NAP Platform remains gravely concerned that these calls [from civil society on recommendations for NAP] have not sufficiently heeded, over the three year formulation process. Only six months are left until the scheduled publishing of the NAP. We urge the government once again to incorporate the above recommendations into the NAP, both in the formulation process and the update process...

...[V]arious issues remain unaddressed, including the lack of policy coherence, and the lack of a gap analysis...[I]t is necessary to reaffirm that the NAP should be based on the UNGPs. In addition, in recognition that the UNGPs’ ultimate goal is the realization of a sustainable society where the human rights of every person is respected, the government should state clearly that the ‘NAPs must be underpinned by the core human rights principles of nondiscrimination and equality’...

...[T]he formulation process has not had the required level of inclusiveness or transparency...

...Policy coherence throughout the current formulation process, including the published documentation regarding the contents of the NAP, is questionable...

...The formulation process has proceeded without conducting a gap analysis, raising major concerns regarding the effectiveness of any NAP to address as to human rights issues adequately...

...[W]e call on the government to conduct regular update with a full account of necessary factors to the NAP formulation process such as inclusiveness and transparency...