The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has just finalized its review of El Salvador, one of the State parties under examination during the 52nd session of the Committee held between the 28 April and 23 May 2014.
An ICJ Mission to assess the respect of social rights in the Peruvian agro-export industry concluded a field visit to the country with bleak preliminary conclusions.
The Mission of observers, which included Philippe Texier and lawyers Alberto L. Gomez Z. and Carlos Lopez, focused their assessment in the Valley of Ica, south of Lima. On Wednesday 7 May, the Mission shared their visit conclusions with the Sub-committee on Labour and Social Security of the Peruvian Parliament.
Philippe Texier, former judge at the Court of Cassation of France and former chair of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, told the Parliamentary Sub-committee that conditions of work in the agroexport industry are precarious, allow cases of child labour and fall generally short of international standards accepted by Peru through international conventions.
The final report of the Mission panel will be released at a later stage after additional research and consultation is carried out.
While in Peru, the panel held meetings in Lima and in Ica with a wide range of trade unions, labour and health authorities, local NGOs, experts, individual workers and even working children.
The experts also paid visits to the field to see workers and children, were interviewed by IDL Radio and made a presentation of preliminary conclusions to the Parliamentary Sub-Committee on Labour and Social Security.
The agro-export industry in Peru mainly produces asparagus, mangoes, avocado pears, paprika and grapes, most of which is exported to Europe and North America.
It has experienced exponential growth during the last decade, where important national and international investments were made in this industry.However, economic growth has not been matched with improvements in social conditions of workers and the local population.
Contact:
Carlos Lopez, Director, Business and Human Rights, carlos.lopez(a)icj.org +41 22 979 3816
The final nominees are Alejandra Ancheita (Mexico), Adilur Rahman Khan (Bangladesh) and Cao Shunli (China), who died shortly after her nomination. The ICJ is a member of the jury.
This is the English title of a book by Horacio Verbitsky and Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky, with contributions from more than twenty specialists, which reveals complicity between private actors and the dictatorship in Argentina.
The book will be launched on 10 April at 4 pm (16.00)in the Library Events Room (B-135) at the Palais des Nations, Building B, 1st floor, in Geneva.
Carlos Lopez, ICJ Senior Legal Adviser on Business and Human Rights will be among the discussants at the event. He contributed one chapter of the book, on corporate complicity.
The cases of business collaboration discussed in the book range from the role of private companies, to the financing role of the banks and the mass media.
The book also discusses economic illegal appropriation of business, the role of lawyers, business organizations, economic think tanks, the Catholic hierarchy, and scholars.
UNOG-launch book corporate complicity in Argentina-news-events-2014 (full invitation in pdf or you can also enlarge the picture)
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