PRESS BRIEFING - GLOBAL COMPACT SUBJECT OF PANEL DISCUSSION AT HEADQUARTERS

Press Briefing

GLOBAL COMPACT SUBJECT OF PANEL DISCUSSION AT HEADQUARTERS

Ways to monitor the implementation of commitments made by organizations and businesses taking part in the Global Compact were explored during a press conference given by a panel of corporate and non-governmental leaders held at United Nations Headquarters on 26 July.

The panel was one of two teams meeting to discuss the implications of the agreement signed by some 60 multinational corporations, labour unions and watchdog groups. It followed a high-level meeting convened by Secretary-General Kofi Annan, which brought together leaders from global business, the international labour movement and civil society organizations to put into practice the Global Compact of human rights first announced by the Secretary-General at the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland in January 1999. [A summary of the other panel's discussion has been issued seperately.]

Participating in the press conference were Juan Somavia, Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO); Maria Eitel, Nike's Vice-President for Corporate Responsibility; Claes Hall, Senior Advisor of Aracruz Celulose; Lars A. Stalberg, Senior Vice-President of Ericsson; Pierre San,, Secretary-General of Amnesty International; and John Evans, General Secretary of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU). The panel was moderated by Therese Gastaut, Director, United Nations Public Affairs Division, Department of Public Information.

Mr. Somavia drew attention to the long history of collaboration between international organizations, business and the ILO. The ILO Conventions had been approved by the tripartite structure of governments, business and labour, then ratified and turned into law. Because those Conventions applied to governments, the ILO's supervisory machinery was directed at governments -- the Global Compact was expanding this notion.

Businesses should commit publicly to pursuing specific objectives, and then they would inevitably become open to being monitored, he said. Companies' activities would be monitored in terms of human rights, the environment, gender issues and civil society, all based on their commitment to the nine principles of the Global Compact.

Ms. Eitel stressed the importance of openness and transparency as essential characteristics of the alliance. She invited journalists to come see the improvements that Nike had made to its factories. The age limit for factory work had been raised to meet ILO standards. The company was now investigating all its factory sites, and making its findings public. Nike wanted to be part of the solution and welcomed being compared to others as it tried to improve its work sites.

Mr. Evans said human rights, labour rights and environmental standards must be taken seriously, and be made to work in practice. Labour must be protected through agreements with employers. The ICFTU would be vigilant in seeing that such agreements were not used as smokescreens.

Asked what future he envisioned for the initiative, Mr. Somavia said that the morning's session had raised the idea of taking the Global Compact to the national or local level. The ILO stood ready to help decide future courses of action.

He also stressed that companies that sought to enter the Compact must agree to eliminate child labour. The ILO stood ready to help realize commitments to ending this practice, which was affecting some 250 million children worldwide today.

Ms. Eitel said that Nike had high expectations of the results of the Global Compact, which was emerging at a historic moment in the globalization process. The Compact was about devising ways to improve the impact of the global economy on the lives of people around the world. Energy should be focused on making things happen on the ground, instead of just developing a forum for dialogue.

Mr. Stalberg said that committing to the Global Compact involved increased public scrutiny, over and above what companies were already exposed to. Corporate principles and policies must be monitored, and there must also be an agreed external monitoring process, and ways to ensure accountability.

Responding to questions about Amnesty International's decision to participate, Mr. San, said that his organization's participation in the Global Compact did not mean it would refuse to criticize or publicly expose companies that were complacent about human rights violations.

Amnesty wanted companies that joined the Global Compact to make a public statement, and be open to independent monitoring, he said. Governments could be monitored whether or not they liked it, but if a company closed its doors, there was no access to what happened on the work floor. A company could be monitored only if it cooperated with the monitors, he stressed.

Such monitoring had to be independent, publicly reported and made available to all stakeholders, he said. It was also necessary to have a sanctions regime for those companies that joined the Compact and then violated their commitments. Such companies must no longer be able to benefit from the partnership.

Ms. Eitel said Nike would embrace a system of independent and certified monitoring of generally accepted principles. Nike was participating in the initiative because it thought that by joining forces, companies committed to making a positive impact could have greater effect.

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