292 results
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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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update Weekly Update 16 February: Honduran Supreme Court quashes conviction of Guapinol environmental defenders
Workers sue Dyson over string of allegations relating to forced labour & exploitation at Malaysian supplier ATA Industrial; International Olympic Committee criticised for not conducting adequate human rights due diligence to address risks of forced labour in Winter Games apparel; Petition launched to stop alleged planned eviction of 70,000 Maasai from ancestral land by Tanzanian Govt. to pave way for hunting co. Otterlo Business Corporation; Italian co. Chimet allegedly buying gold illegally extracted from Indigenous land in Amazon, finds Federal Police; Japan's Kirin brewery to ‘urgently terminate’ joint venture partnership with military junta-linked Myanmar Brewery Limited; Danish pension fund giant AkademikerPension drops budget airline Wizz Air over alleged labour abuses; Investigation into high death rate among Nepali workers in Saudi Arabia finds unsafe working conditions, lack of investigations & relatives left destitute; and much more
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update Chinese Responsible Investment Overseas Newsletter Issue 17 (Feb 2022) | Zimbabwe: War of words emerges over social and environmental impacts of Chinese business operations
Pakistan: Chinese govt. and companies urged to openly engage with stakeholders as massive protests and complaint against China-Pakistan Economic Corridor threatens success of project and bilateral relationship; Zimbabwe: War of words emerges between Chinese actors and civil society groups over environmental and social impacts of Chinese business operations
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update Weekly Update 09 February: 100+ EU companies & investors call for accountability legislation
Global companies failing to comply with Australian Modern Slavery Act, new report from coalition of academics & civil society organisations shows; Oxfam America calls on EITI members to take action to ensure cos. can't use membership to boost reputation while opposing supportive regulations; South African Constitutional Court to hear Australian mining co. Mineral Commodities Ltd defamation case against 6 environmentalists & activists; Eucalyptus co. Suzano's ‘sustainable agenda’ causing conflicts with Indigenous communities & quilombolas in Brazil, claim environmentalists; Vyasi Hydroelectric project in India allegedly proceeding with no environmental impact assessment or local consultation, threatening Indigenous communities; Usdaw shopworkers union celebrates ‘huge win’ in UK legal case against Tesco over 'fire and rehire' tactics; Newcastle United FC training camp in Saudi Arabia criticised by Amnesty International for ‘sportswashing’ Govt. human rights abuses; and much more
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