PRESS RELEASE
10th session of Historical negotiations in the UN to regulate transnational corporations bring life to a multilateral system in crisis
17 December 2024, Geneva, Switzerland
This week (16-20 December) the 10th session of historical negotiations are taking place in Geneva, Switzerland, at the Human Rights Council (HRC) of the United Nations. The negotiations have the mandate to regulate the activities of transnational corporations (TNCs) under human rights law through a legally binding treaty.
The consistent participation of members of communities affected by activities of transnational corporations, civil society organisations, trade unions and social movements makes it one of the most strongly supported processes in the history of UN human rights negotiations.
Expectations were raised this year with the approval of the first additional resolution at the HRC bringing additional resources and capacity to carry out the negotiations. The session, however, came under threat just months prior. Originally scheduled for October 2024, it was abruptly rescheduled to late December, imposing profound logistical and financial burdens on the attending civil society groups and states from the Global South.
Zakithi Sibandze from the Rural Women’s Assembly explains “This decision is a direct attack on Global South voices. Postponing the negotiations to December, a time when many in the Global South are engaged in cultural celebrations and family traditions, is deeply insensitive and exclusionary. It is Global South voices who have, for far too long, been marginalised at the seat of power and this decision is emblematic of that.”
Even so, the Global Campaign to Reclaim Peoples’ Sovereignty, Dismantle Corporate Power and Stop Impunity remains determined to make the demands of its over 260 organisations heard. One such being the scope of the treaty which remains a contested point in the negotiations.
Pablo Fajardo from UDAPT/Friends of the Earth Ecuador explains: “The Resolution 26/9 that initiated this process gave a clear mandate here to regulate the activities of TNCs and other businesses with an international character. However, during the last two sessions the Chair of the process, the State of Ecuador, has sided with corporate interests and Global North countries, where the vast majority of TNCs headquarters are based. Many Global South countries such as China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Russia, Palestine, Kenya, Egypt, South Africa, Cuba, Honduras and others are emphasising the importance that the treaty focus on TNCs”
As Pierre Maison from La Via Campesina describes it, “The International Chamber of Commerce, the International Organisation of Employers and the US Council for International Business are nothing but a mouthpiece of transnational corporations. They have no place here. Violators should not be in the room where it is discussed how they should pay for their violations.”
Dima Asfour, Palestine UN Representative, asserted during the first day of the session that “In these dark moments we are living, corporations are complicit in genocide, mass displacement, famine, and the destruction of land and our nature – be it in Palestine, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and beyond. All life on this planet is at stake and those who are most affected are those who have been fighting against this corporate colonisation: Indigenous peoples, women, peasants and human rights defenders. Corporate impunity cannot prevail. Corporate greed entrenched by the legacy of colonisation and capitalist agendas must be brought to an end.“
A delegation of the Global Inter-parliamentary Network (GIN) organised a side event to discuss the complementarity between national legislation to regulate TNCs and the Binding treaty process. Alírio Uribe, Member of Parliament in Colombia; Federico Fagioli, Provincial Senator in Argentina and Sonia Gutierrez Raguay, Member of Parliament in Guatemala emphasised in their expositions that “the Binding Treaty should serve as an inspiration to advance domestic regulations that strengthen national legal systems and vice versa. This is especially important in a global context of interrelated crises that require immediate attention and of which transnational corporations are central actors as instigators and beneficiaries.”
The kick-off of the 10th session of these historic negotiations highlights how, despite the perceived powerlessness of the multilateral system, there remains a strong commitment to use this space to address some of the most pressing issues of our time. While powerful Global North states use the multilateral system to block decisive action to stop the genocide in Gaza or effectively tackle climate change, many hold hope that this UN process can help transform the world for the better.
NOTE TO EDITORS
For further information or to arrange interviews with spokespersons you can contact:
Sol Trumbo Vila: soltrumbovila[a]tni.org
Ghislaine Fandel: ghislaine[a]foei.org
This press release is issued by the Global Campaign to Reclaim Peoples Sovereignty, Dismantle Corporate Power and Stop Impunity (Global Campaign). A network of over 250 social movements, civil society organisations (CSOs), trade unions and communities affected by the activities of transnational corporations (TNCs), representing 260 million people globally. https://www.stopcorporateimpunity.org
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
- Agenda of work of the 10th session and road map of the OIGWG
- Human Rights Council Procedural Decision A/HCR/56/116 adopted in July 2024 providing additional resources to the process.
- 2014 26/9 Resolution that started this process.
- Website Global Campaign to Reclaim Peoples Sovereignty, Dismantle Corporate Power and Stop Impunity.
- “Frontiers of an effective Binding Treaty”. Key arguments the Global Campaign puts forwards for an effective Binding Treaty
- Website Global Interparliamentarian Network in support of the Binding Treaty
- Social Media: @StopTNCimpunity #BindingTreaty #StopCorporateImpunity
