Expert panelists who attended the recent The Economist Sustainability Week forum strongly maintained that as human rights issues occur across countries, supply chains and industries, the work of protecting and respecting human rights should take priority for individuals, corporations and governments alike.
“Collective action on human rights has to be the building block to whatever solution we agree on—it is always easier to solve a problem when everyone works together, said Chris Southworth, secretary general of the International Chamber of Commerce UK.
It was found during the summit that the tobacco industry was not only excluded from the COVID-19 vaccination program of some governments but was also barred from collaborating with government agencies, NGOs and even agencies of the United Nations in pushing for the global human rights agenda.
“The best way to protect human rights is to follow the United Nation’s Guiding Principles framework which applies to both states and businesses,” said Suzanne Wise, senior vice president corporate affairs and communications of Japan Tobacco Inc.
“The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals call for increased partnerships, yet in contrast to this, some UN agencies and organizations call to exclude certain industries from such partnerships. In doing so, they exclude over 100 million people from the tobacco industry alone, including 40million farmers,” Wise said.