On April 16th, 2009, the ABA-UNDP International Legal Resource Center (ILRC) co-hosted a program with various entities within the ABA Section of International Law, the  ABA Center for Human Rights, and the Law Society of England & Wales on “Upholding the Rule of Law for the World’s Poor: Who is Responsible?”

The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (“ICESCR”), the lesser known sister-treaty to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (‘ICCPR”), is becoming increasingly important in a globalized world. As corporations seek to do business in countries where investment opportunities are ripe and labor comes at a bargain price, government leaders in developing countries strive to create business-friendly environments in the hopes of better positioning themselves on the economic playing field. All too often, though, the rights of impoverished populations in developing countries become marginalized as corporate deals are negotiated. Nowhere is this more apparent than in South Asia where countries like Pakistan are faced with the challenges of globalization on a daily basis.

So who is ultimately responsible for upholding the rights of the poor? The international body charged with the enforcement of the ICESCR, the Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, indicates in its deliberations that the responsibility belongs to the governments that ratify the Covenant. However, the deeper question is whether developing nations that legally bind themselves to ICESCR provisions have viable infrastructures and court systems such that poor populations can assert their rights in tandem with rapid corporate expansion. Is there a role for corporate actors in these scenarios? Should corporations address economic, social, and cultural rights and their enforceability? 

To answer these questions, the ABA-UNDP International Legal Resource Center together with various other entities within the ABA Section of International Law, the ABA Center for Human Rights, and the Law Society of England and Wales organized a panel during the ABA Section of International Law Spring Meeting which took place on April 14-18, 2009 in Washington, D.C. Recognizing that striking a balance among the above-mentioned competing interests is key to fostering vibrant economies and, ultimately, upholding the rule of law in the developing world, each of the panelists provided the audience with his/her perspective about potential solutions for empowering the poor.

Mr. Christopher Avery, founder and Director of the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre in London, informed the audience about particular investigations that his entity is pursuing in order to identify the positive and negative impacts that global corporations are having in developing countries. His entity’s website is an effective awareness tool as it is well documented and provides the reader with a wealth of information in three languages, English, French, and Spanish. Mr. Avery also pointed to another online resource, the BASESwiki which aims to help businesses and individuals explore solutions to grievances and disputes that impact their relationships. BASESwiki provides a place to exchange information and learn about non-judicial grievance mechanisms around the world.

Ms. Maria Virginia Bras Gomes presented her views as a member of the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. She indicated that the Committee’s main task is to require States Parties to the ICESCR to comply with the Covenant. Ms. Gomes also underscored the importance of supporting a vibrant civil society in developing countries, such that non-governmental organizations (“NGOs”) could “shadow” the government and corporations, and track if indeed ICESCR commitments are being implemented. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights documents the work of the Committee on its website.  

Mr. Ahsan Zahir Rizvi, a corporate lawyer from Pakistan, delineated the realities of doing business in the developing world and emphasized that there should be a push towards making corporations understand that taking into account the rights of the impoverished is, in fact, “good business.” Furthermore, he agreed with Ms. Gomes about the crucial role that NGOs can play in countries like Pakistan by raising awareness about the government’s responsibility to protect the poor as it allows corporations to operate within its jurisdiction.

Ms. Caroline Sage, counsel within the Justice Sector Reform Unit of the World Bank, focused her remarks on how to engage in pro-poor initiatives in the absence of a functioning judiciary and court system in a developing country. She presented the audience with an example of a project, which her office implemented in Cambodia and which established an international arbitration council equipped to hear labor grievances filed against businesses. While the council’s decisions are not binding, Ms. Sage pointed out that parties abide by them. So far, 70% of the council’s decisions have upheld the labor rights of the impoverished in Cambodia. For more information on this and other pro-poor World Bank legal initiatives, please visit the website for Justice for the Poor. 

Program Chairs:

Don S. DeAmicis, Ropes & Gray LLP, Boston, MA
Mohammad A. Syed (“Mo”), King and Ballow, Nashville, TN
Christina Biebesheimer, Chief Counsel, Justice Reform Practice Group, Legal Vice-Presidency, World Bank

Introduction & Moderator:

Mohammad A. Syed (“Mo”), King and Ballow, Nashville, TN

Speakers:

Christopher L. Avery, Founder and Director of the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, London, United Kingdom
Maria Virginia Bras Gomes, Member of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR enforcement body), Lisbon, Portugal
Ahsan Zahir Rizvi, Partner, Rizvi, Isa, Afridi & Angell, Karachi, Pakistan
Caroline Sage, Counsel, Justice Sector Reform Unit, Legal Vice-Presidency, World Bank, Washington, DC

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