MONROVIA – The EHUD FOUNDATION has trained over 70 Human Rights Investigators & Advocates in Human Rights in the context of Business.
The training, which ran from 15-17 of August 2019, was held at the BWI Compound, Kakata, Margibi County and was occasioned by interactive discussions between the participants and the facilitators.
The EHUD FOUNDATION is an organization that is involved in creating a world where families in particular children, women and vulnerable communities live in a safe environment free of harm or deprivation; where their dreams and aspiration can come true in their lifetime.
Interestingly, the Vision of the organization is: Making a New Generation of Leaders and Creating safe Communities, while its Core Values include: Strengthen the capacity of deprived children, families and communities to transform their vulnerability to self-reliance, Support relief in emergencies and influence policy decisions that make lasting change on poverty and exclusion.
The rationale for the training was to provide Human Rights Investigators and Caseworkers an in-depth knowledge and skills on the subject matter; States’ existing obligations to respect, protect and fulfill human rights and fundamental freedoms; the role of business enterprises as specialized organs of society performing specialized functions, required to comply with all applicable laws and to respect human rights and the need for rights and obligations to be matched to appropriate and effective remedies when breached.
During the training, the participants were drilled in the introduction of human rights, overview which took into consideration the meaning of human rights; nature of human rights; characteristics of human rights; Who has the responsibility to uphold human rights? Government Human Rights Obligations; where are Human rights found?; Examples of Human Rights; Human Rights Violation and Complaint / Accountability Mechanism.
The participants were told that Human Rights guarantee people the means necessary to satisfy their basic needs such as food, housing and education so they can take full advantage of available opportunities; human Rights is based on the fact that every human being is born with these rights and is entitled to enjoy all of these rights without discrimination; human Rights give people the freedom to choose how they live, how they express themselves and what kind of government they want to support. By guaranteeing life, liberty, equality and security, human rights protect people against abuse by those who are more powerful than them. UNIVERSAL: Apply to all human beings no matter the place or location. INALIENABLE: Because they are inherent, they cannot be granted or purchased. They cannot be lost or denied except in accordance with provisions of law that meets international human rights standard. Right to Life, Liberty and Security; Freedom from Slavery or Servitude; Freedom from Torture, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment; Freedom from Arbitrary Arrest, Detention or Exile; Right to a Fair and Public Hearing and Right to Privacy.
In 2005, the UN Commission on Human Rights adopted resolution E/CN.4/RES/2005/69 requesting the appointment of a special representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) to identify and clarify standards of corporate responsibility and accountability for transnational corporations and other business enterprises with regard to human rights
The UN “Protect, Respect and Remedy” Framework was elaborated by the SRSG and presented to the Human Rights Council in 2008. On the basis of this framework, the SRSG developed the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs), which was unanimously endorsed by the Human Rights Council in June 2011.
On the General State Regulatory and Policy Functions; in meeting their duty to protect, the participants were informed that States should Enforce laws that are aimed at, or have the effect of, requiring business enterprises to respect human rights, and periodically to assess the adequacy of such laws and address any gaps; Ensure that other laws and policies governing the creation and ongoing operation of business enterprises, such as corporate law, do not constrain but enable business respect for human rights; Provide effective guidance to business enterprises on how to respect human rights throughout their operation and Encourage, and where appropriate require, business enterprises to communicate how they address their human rights impacts.