EU: National Human Rights Institutions provide recommendations on material scope of human and environmental rights to be protected under the CSDDD
"Submission to inform the trilogue negotiations to achieve an agreement on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD)"
[...] This statement [by the National Human Rights Institutions that form part of the GANHRI Working Group on Business and Human Rights] addresses the material scope of human and environmental rights protected under the CSDDD. Companies can impact the full spectrum of human rights and for that reason, they should identify adverse impacts against all internationally recognised human rights instruments in line with the approach of the UNGPs. This includes as a minimum the instruments comprising the International Bill of Rights and all fundamental Conventions of the ILO, but also other international and European human rights treaties and non-binding instruments reflecting international human rights law. The material scope should further include international and European climate and environmental law, including the Paris Agreement.
2. Definition of adverse human rights impact (Art. 3 CSDDD)
[...] NHRIs that form part of GANHRI WG on Business and Human Rights, recommend that an adverse human rights impact is defined as any action which removes or reduces the ability of an individual or group to enjoy the rights or to be protected by the prohibitions enshrined in international conventions and instruments, rather than as a violation of such rights.
3. Determination of listed rights through a rightsholder-centered approach
[...] The signatories of this statement support broad inclusion of international human rights instruments in line with the approach of the UNGPs. The Annex should include at a minimum the instruments comprising the International Bill of Rights and all fundamental Conventions of the ILO, but also other international and European human rights treaties and non-binding instruments reflecting international human rights law, in particular regarding rightsholder-groups that are at a proportionally high risk of negative impacts by corporate activities.
4. Environmental impacts
[...] NHRIs that form part of GANHRI WG on Business and Human Rights, recommend including all relevant international and European environmental law regulations in Annex Part II.
5. Review of Annex
[...] NHRIs that form part of GANHRI WG on Business and Human Rights, therefore recommend to explicitly declare the Annex open for updates and amendments to comply with any new developments in the field of international human and environmental rights law