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update Chinese Responsible Investment Overseas Newsletter Issue 18 (Apr 2022) | Russian invasion of Ukraine: Chinese companies and financial institutions take cautious reaction amid sanction concerns
Russian invasion of Ukraine: Chinese companies and financial institutions take cautious reaction amid sanction concerns
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update Weekly Update 13 April | Ukraine invasion: Renewed calls for proactive due diligence by companies with operations in Russia
Activists allege Meta’s weak content moderation & double standards facilitate hate crimes; Malawian Attorney General apologises for arbitrary arrest & detention of journalist, vows Govt. will review media laws that restrict freedom of expression; NGO files lawsuit against Bumble Bee Foods over deceptive marketing claims & alleges forced labour in supply chains; Indian automotive parts co. JNS Instruments workers continue protest demanding unionisation after 130+ arrested; 26 CSOs call on oil co. Aker BP to reconsider terms of Lundin Energy acquisition due to human rights concerns; 10 Nepali migrant workers allegedly paid extortionate recruitment fees to Meridian Manpower & left stranded without jobs; and much more
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update Weekly Update 06 April | India: H&M signs binding union agreement to tackle sexual abuse
Human rights defenders & business in 2021 briefing | Protecting the rights of people driving a just transition; Commentary from Ukraine | How companies operating in Ukraine could better uphold human rights following Russia’s invasion; Children allegedly working on Ghanaian farms supplying Cadbury owner Mondelēz Intl. 20+yrs after commitments to eliminate child labour; Big mining cos. allegedly lead & finance 'chain of destruction' on Indigenous lands in Brazil, says Amazon Watch and Apib report; Former ATA workers sue Dyson alleging co. was unjustly enriched by exploitative conditions at Malaysian suppliers’ factory; Labour rights violations remain systemic in European supermarket supply chains, despite broad improvements, finds Oxfam benchmark; UK Export Finance allegedly knew of labour abuses & environmental harm at Middle Eastern & African projects prior to funding; and much more
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update Weekly Update 30 March: Labour rights concerns overshadow FIFA World Cup Qatar draw
Nokia allegedly helped enable Russian surveillance system; Uber, Bolt and Didi drivers in South Africa hold 3-day strike over costs & working conditions; Colombian community alleges air & water contamination caused by palm oil co. Oro Rojo remains unresolved; 103 Chinese migrant workers stranded in Sulawesi for 5+ months allege employers refused to renew work visas as project had been suspended; FinFisher ceases operations after accounts seized by German Public Prosecutor’s Office, after CSO criminal complaint alleging illegal export of surveillance software; Financial Times finds 'dozens' of cleaners employed by ADNH Compass & Farnek have paid recruitment fees; and much more
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update Weekly Update 23 March: Majority of companies operating in Russia fail to demonstrate human rights due diligence
EU, US, South Africa & India agree intellectual property waiver for COVID-19 vaccines; Nigerian Delta State communities demand justice after Conoil oil spill allegedly causes outbreak of waterborne diseases in only source of drinking water; Leaked documents allegedly show Solway Group knew it was polluting Lake Izabal in Guatemala, bribed local population & threatened journalists; 1,200 former Violet Apparel workers demand USD1.4 million unpaid compensation & damages after Cambodian factory closure in July 2020; P&O Ferries sack 800 British crew members via video message, replace with migrant workers reportedly paid GBP1.81 an hour; 3 cos. granted licences to explore mining seabed minerals in Cook Islands despite CSOs & end user cos. calling for seabed mining moratorium; and much more
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update Weekly Update 16 March: 12-year global boycott of Uzbek cotton ends
Indian beverage bottler cos. Moon and Varun, which bottle for Coca-Cola and Pepsi, found guilty of illegal extraction of ground water, causing environmental damage; Documentary uncovers labour exploitation & sexual abuse of local workers by Qingdao Construction Group Corporation in Lesotho; Ecuadorian Govt. grants amnesty to 268 people, primarily Indigenous defenders, criminalised & persecuted for defending their rights & territories; Taiwanese Supreme Court rules in favour of 222 former Radio Corp of America workers over exposure to cancer-causing chemicals; French Supreme Court allows NGOs to access co. documents as evidence in case against Perenco for alleged environmental & social harm in DRC; Human Rights Watch calls on FIFA to investigate World Cup contractor Bin Omran Trading & Contracting which allegedly failed to pay workers for 5 months; and much more
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update Weekly Update 09 March: Shell U-turn as pressure mounts on businesses operating in Russia over invasion of Ukraine
IBM, WeWork, Samsung, Puma, Zara and many more suspend services in Russia; International Women’s Day: Our research finds women human rights defenders remain at high risk of violence, threats to their safety & judicial harassment; Facebook allegedly continue to allow users in Ethiopia to post ‘horrifying & hateful’ content inciting ethnic violence; New Honduran Govt. announces ban on open-pit mining & will begin ‘review, suspension & cancellation’ of licences & concessions; Australian construction company CIMIC accused of not paying migrant workers in Middle East hundreds of millions of dollars; incl. co. comment; Highway being built by JP Autoceste & funded by intl. investors allegedly threatens livelihoods & rights of ethnic minorities; Danish Football Association divests from Qatari investment citing human rights & environmental concerns around FIFA World Cup 2022; and much more
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update Weekly Update 02 March: Russian invasion of Ukraine puts spotlight on business influence
Global businesses incl. oil & gas, tech, automobile, food & beverage, healthcare, sport & entertainment seek to balance sanctions against Russia with support for Ukraine; EU Commission publishes Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence proposal; Unión Hidalgo defender Edgar Martín Regalado, opponent of EDF wind farm in Oaxaca, attacked after press conference; Mexican Supreme Court rules Almaden Minerals' mining concessions violated Nahua community rights & orders cancellation; 3 people killed in Uniworld Footwear factory fire in Bangladesh; Swedish telecom giant Ericsson allegedly paid bribes to Islamic State to sustain business in Iraq, leaked documents show; Frontex contractors allegedly operating surveillance drones used by Israeli military in assaults on Gaza to monitor migrants & refugees crossing Mediterranean; and much more
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update Weekly Update 23 February: Telecoms companies called on to resist Myanmar digital coup
Leak shows Credit Suisse managed accounts for clients involved in drug trafficking, money laundering & other crimes; Employees accuse Kenyan Facebook content moderation contractor Sama of paying poverty wages, union suppression & intimidation; ZFreestones Quarry mining on Dangamvura Mountain, Zimbabwe, 'provocative & bullying' says petition signed by 35 CSOs; Mexican environmental defender Francisco Vázquez assassinated; Families of Sandy Hook school shooting victims settle for USD73m with gun maker Remington; Kingsgate reopens Thai mine named in trade agreement arbitration lawsuit & denies responsibility for water & land contamination; Uzenmunaigas oil workers in Kazakhstan protest demanding better salaries & end of prosecutions & alleged physical abuse of people detained in January protests; Qatar Airways faces allegations of retaliatory action against employees using private online forums to voice concerns of working conditions; and much more
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