Geneva - Countries should draw up laws criminalizing all activities by transnational corporations which violate economic, social and cultural rights, recommends a study submitted to the U.N. Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities. The report was prepared by Senegalese jurist El Hadji Guisse, one of the 26 independent experts sitting on the Sub-Commission -- the main body of experts of the U.N. Commission on Human Rights -- in session in Geneva until Aug. 28.
"In terms of polluting transnational corporations in particular, in
addition to special regulations, taxes should be levied on their
turnover so that they contribute to efforts to treat industrial waste,"
the study stresses. "They should also be systematically held accountable
for damage caused to populations and states."
In his paper, Guisse recognizes the complexity of the problems
surrounding the activities of transnationals and observance of economic
and social rights. He recommends that the Sub-Commission analyze the
issue in a broader framework, such as a taskforce which would submit its
conclusions to the Sub-Commission in future sessions.
The study describes the important role played by transnationals in
international economic life, pointing out that "of the 100 biggest
concentrations of wealth in the world, 51 percent are owned by
transnational corporations and 49 per cent by states.
"Mitsubishi's turnover exceeds Indonesia's Gross National Product (GNP),
while Ford's turnover exceeds South Africa's GNP and Royal Dutch Shell
earns more than Norway," Guisse stresses.
Transnationals are very active in the most dynamic branches of the
economy, especially telecommunications, transport, banking, insurance
and wholesale trade, notes the document, which adds that "they have a
presence in the vital sectors and are thus in a position to block any
moves towards respect for and protection of human rights."
Governed by the drive for profits, transnationals "are unaware of or
disregard the impact their activities could have on economic, social and
cultural rights, whether at the collective level or at an individual
level. These companies are frequently, if not always, behind massive
human rights violations; in the same spirit, the states that benefit
from their activities pass legislation on their rights," Guisse asserts.
"Moreover, certain transnational corporations have in recent years
frequently been accused of sparking bloody conflicts throughout the
world: in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire),
Nigeria, Iraq, etc."
The study recommends that the companies, in the headquarters agreements they sign with countries, be made to commit themselves to observing collective or individual economic rights. The globalization of the economy leads to the risk of generating even wealthier transnationals and swelling the ranks of the poor, above all in the weakest economies, Guisse warns. He suggests the need to reflect on how the development and proliferation of transnationals can be managed "to the benefit of all. They can and must participate, while abiding by the rules, in the economic development of the states where they are located and in whose economies they operate," he concludes.
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