More than 400 member organizations or associates of the Treaty Alliance have co-signed a letter calling on all UN member states to commit concretely, and without delay, to the new stage of the international treaty negotiation process . This would notably improve access to justice for victims and put an end to corporate impunity in the event of human rights violations.
French translation of the letter:
We, the members of the Treaty Alliance, a broad platform of civil society organizations and social movements in favor of the adoption of an international treaty concerning transnational corporations and other businesses, and other undersigned organizations, call on all UN Member States to engage without delay in this new stage of the process, in active and constructive negotiations on the content of the treaty. This is to improve the human rights of communities and people affected by corporate activities, improve their access to effective remedy and end corporate impunity for human rights violations.
We consider that talks between Member States, as well as with civil society organizations, are essential to move the process forward. We envisage that this work will move forward on two tracks, both of extreme importance to the process: one on the content of the future treaty and the other on the way in which the discussions will be organized (“the way forward”). .
To do this, we first call on States to make substantive observations during the informal consultations currently taking place in Geneva and be ready to contribute with concrete formulations and substantive proposals on the draft treaty once it is published, as foreseen in the report of the third session of the Intergovernmental Working Group.
Secondly, in order to support the active and substantive engagement of Member States in the negotiations, we emphasize that it is very important that the draft treaty is published in a timely manner to give government delegations and other stakeholders sufficient time to prepare for the discussions. This text should take into consideration the elements of the document published before the third session and the oral and written contributions made during the first three sessions.
Third, in order to move forward on the second track regarding the negotiation process, we also call on States to actively participate by submitting concrete and clear proposals to the Presidency on how the work program, including that of the upcoming 4th session, should be organized to complete the mandate as quickly as possible. We also call on the Chairman of the intergovernmental working group to pay particular attention to all these proposals and to redouble his efforts to achieve a negotiated outcome.
We emphasize our strong commitment to the goal of establishing an international treaty. A set of binding obligations and enforcement mechanisms is the necessary and logical next step in the process that began decades ago to ensure access to justice for affected people and communities and end corporate impunity.
Contact:
Agatha Smyth
agathe.smyth@justicepaix.be
+32(0)2 896 95 00
