Why does the European Union fear a binding human rights treaty on transnational corporations?

A statement by Friends of the Earth International criticizing the European Union for obstructing United Nations negotiations for a legally binding treaty to regulate transnational corporations and ensure corporate accountability for human rights and environmental abuses.

• The European Union is accused of delaying and obstructing the United Nations intergovernmental working group's process to create a legally binding treaty to regulate transnational corporations. This obstruction includes failing to attend opening negotiations in 2015 and calling for a new resolution in May and June (of 2018) to reduce the working group's mandate, which the author suggests could water down the treaty into a voluntary amendment of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
• Friends of the Earth International identifies several essential components for an effective legally binding instrument: corporate liability for violations, obligations for corporations to respect human rights, supply chain transparency to prevent companies from avoiding responsibility, and the creation of an international human rights court for cases where national courts fail.
• The proposed treaty's Zero Draft should prioritize human rights over trade agreements, establish reparations for affected communities, protect territory defenders, and regulate international financial institutions to prevent impunity when financing destructive projects.
• While the EU block is obstructive, some individual European states, specifically France and Switzerland, are seeing developments pushed by parliaments and civil society to establish legal obligations for corporations to prevent environmental and human rights abuses across supply chains.

APA

admin (2018). Why does the European Union fear a binding human rights treaty on transnational corporations? Friends of the Earth International. https://www.foei.org/why-does-the-european-union-fear-a-binding-human-rights-treaty-on-transnational-corporations/

Chicago

admin. Why does the European Union fear a binding human rights treaty on transnational corporations? Friends of the Earth International, 2018. https://www.foei.org/why-does-the-european-union-fear-a-binding-human-rights-treaty-on-transnational-corporations/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=admin |title=Why does the European Union fear a binding human rights treaty on transnational corporations? |publisher=Friends of the Earth International |date=11 July 2018 |url=https://www.foei.org/why-does-the-european-union-fear-a-binding-human-rights-treaty-on-transnational-corporations/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{admin2018why, author = {admin}, title = {{Why does the European Union fear a binding human rights treaty on transnational corporations?}}, publisher = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2018}, month = jul, url = {https://www.foei.org/why-does-the-european-union-fear-a-binding-human-rights-treaty-on-transnational-corporations/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }