Friends of the Earth International’s written contribution to the open-ended working group on transnational corporations and other business enterprises with respect to human rights

This document is a written contribution from Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) to the UN's open-ended working group (IGWG) regarding a proposed legally binding treaty to regulate transnational corporations (TNCs) and other business enterprises in relation to human rights. FoEI analyzes the 'Zero Draft' presented in 2018, arguing that it is too weak to end corporate impunity and represents a setback compared to previous 'Elements' papers. The document details specific legal gaps in the draft—such as the lack of direct obligations for corporations and insufficient definitions of value chains—and includes testimonies from affected peoples across different continents calling for an international court and the primacy of human rights over investment agreements.

• Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) considers the Zero Draft presented by Ecuador to be insufficient for creating an effective treaty, describing it as "way too weak" and a "setback in a long, participatory process of negotiations". FoEI argues the draft lacks the necessary means to end the impunity of transnational corporations (TNCs) and fails to provide a robust basis for the protections demanded by peoples' movements.
• FoEI identifies several critical omissions in the Zero Draft compared to the 2017 Elements paper, including the absence of a section on principles and the failure to explicitly establish the supremacy of human rights over trade and investment agreements. The document notes that the Zero Draft's wording on trade agreements "seeks to minimize the suppression of the postulate of the supremacy of Human Rights".
• The document argues that the Zero Draft relies too heavily on the "logic of due diligence", which FoEI views as fragile. FoEI advocates for a "duty of care" approach, inspired by French law, which would require companies to not only develop preventive measures but also implement and evaluate them effectively, while ensuring a mechanism for corporate liability.
• FoEI criticizes the Zero Draft for failing to adequately define "value chain" or global production chains, which allows TNCs to escape responsibility for violations committed by subcontractors or subsidiaries. The document asserts that the draft "resorts to an undue generality" and represents a regression from the Elements paper regarding the conceptualization of value chains.
• The contribution calls for the establishment of an International Court on TNCs and Human Rights to ensure effective sanctioning and enforcement, arguing that without such a mechanism, rights in the instrument will remain "merely theoretical". This proposal includes a model statute for a court that is permanent, itinerant, independent, and accessible to victims free of cost.
• FoEI reports a pattern of "corporate capture" and intimidation during the IGWG 4th session, alleging that the International Organization of Employers (IOE) threatened Southern States with "commercial retaliation" if they supported the binding treaty. Additionally, the document claims that state representatives from Brazil and Colombia intimidated affected peoples' voices by accusing them of using "inappropriate language".
• The document strongly criticizes the European Union for its "unproductive" attitude and its unilateral disengagement from the conclusions of the IGWG 4th session. FoEI claims the EU is "siding with business and not the people" by defending voluntary guidelines and ignoring European Parliament resolutions that support a binding treaty.

APA

Friends of the Earth International (2019). Friends of the Earth International’s written contribution to the open-ended working group on transnational corporations and other business enterprises with respect to human rights. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Foei_Submission_2018_english_pages.pdf

Chicago

Friends of the Earth International. Friends of the Earth International’s written contribution to the open-ended working group on transnational corporations and other business enterprises with respect to human rights. 2019. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Foei_Submission_2018_english_pages.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Friends of the Earth International |title=Friends of the Earth International’s written contribution to the open-ended working group on transnational corporations and other business enterprises with respect to human rights |date=June 2019 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Foei_Submission_2018_english_pages.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{friendsoftheearthinternational2019friends, author = {{Friends of the Earth International}}, title = {{Friends of the Earth International’s written contribution to the open-ended working group on transnational corporations and other business enterprises with respect to human rights}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2019}, month = jun, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Foei_Submission_2018_english_pages.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }