On February 28, 2024, EU Member States have despatched a transparent message: no change is required in enterprise conduct – regardless of the years-long debates and negotiations between the co-legislators and the stark defy the resounding help for the Directive from governments, commerce unions, civil society, giant, medium and small companies, and particular person residents.
This afternoon, EU diplomats met on the Coreper to determine and endorse the Company Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD).
As a response, over 140 European organisations share the identical disappointment and name on the Belgian Presidency to rise to the event, circle again to the Member States and guarantee a powerful majority with out haggling over the important thing ideas of the compromise hammered out within the trialogue settlement.
Joint Civil Society Assertion: We are saying YES to the CSDDD
At this time’s failure of the EU Council to endorse the Company Sustainability Due Diligence Directive marks a deplorable setback for company accountability and the safety of Human Rights and the setting worldwide.
The blockage is essentially attributable to large Member States: the early introduced abstention from influential Germany – orchestrated by the minority German coalition accomplice, the FDP, and met with spiritless resistance by Chancellor Scholz – was adopted by others. A final-minute try by France to derail negotiations by proposing a tenfold enhance in firm threshold final night time elevated the uncertainty for different states. These political video games starkly defy the resounding help for the Directive from governments, commerce unions, civil society, giant, medium and small companies, and particular person residents. With out binding EU laws on company accountability, nationwide governments fail to handle human rights impacts, the exploitation of staff, and impacts on Indigenous Peoples’s rights and different conventional communities and pure ecosystems linked to company operations. It’s a harrowing failure by EU governments to satisfy their obligations below worldwide human rights legislation, and a green-light sign to reckless companies that they’ll maintain fueling the local weather and ecological crises for company earnings.
This lack of help threatens a significant piece of EU sustainability laws, vital and overdue to set off the change in enterprise conduct. It’s the results of a democratic course of within the European Parliament and of in depth negotiations with Member States. Now greater than ever, the Belgian Presidency should rise to the event: it’s time to circle again to the Member States and guarantee a powerful majority with out haggling over the important thing ideas of the compromise hammered out within the trilogue settlement.
Signatures:
1. European Coalition for Company Justice
2. Pals of the Earth Europe
3. European Commerce Union Confederation (ETUC)
4. Fern
5. Vredesactie
6. BankTrack
7. FIDH
8. GLOBAL2000-Friendsof the Earth Austria
9. Maibine
10.REDU
11.CUIB
12.ShareAction
13.Swedwatch
14.ECONOMY FOR THE COMMON GOOD
15.Anti-SlaveryInternational
16.Südwind,Austria
17.Solidaridad
18.JugendEineWelt,Austria
19.WeWorld, Italy
20.CentreforResearchon MultinationalCorporations(SOMO)
21.EuropeanPublicServiceUnion (EPSU)
22.HumanRightsInternationalCorner (HRIC)
23.InformationsgruppeLateinamerika, Austria
24.InternationalPeaceInformation Service(IPIS)
25.Novisindikat,Croatia
26.EuropeanEnvironmentalBureau
27.MVOPlatform
28.Irish CoalitionforBusinessand HumanRights
29.ChristianAidIreland
30.Finnwatch
31.OECDWatch
32.WSM
33.ManiTeseETS
34.CampagnaImpresa2030
35.Transport&Surroundings
36.NeSoVe
37.FrankBold
38.RomeroInitiative
39.Latinamerikagrupperna
40.SÜDWIND-InstituteforEconomy andEcumenism
41.BroederlijkDelen
42.ActionAidInternational
43.Oxfam
44.Reds-Reddesolidaridadparala transformaciónsocial
45.FairtradeInternational
46.ClientEarth
47.CNCD-11.11.11
48.Milieudefensie (Pals of the Earth Netherlands)
49.InformationsstellePeru
50.CorA-Netzwerkfür Unternehmensverantwortung
51.Enterprise&HumanRights ResourceCentre
52.WorldFairTradeOrganizationEurope
53.ActChurchofSweden
54.Sherpa
55.DiakoniaSweden
56.LMInternational
57.AmisdelaTerreFrance/Pals of theEarthFrance
58.Polish Institute for Human Rights and Enterprise
59.Grupobelga Solidariocon Guatemala
60.Amnesty Worldwide
61.FOS
62.ClimateActionNetworkEurope
63.IFMetall (IndustrialandMetal Employees’UnionSweden)
64.ProtectionInternational
65.CIDSE-Aninternational familyof Catholicsocial justice organisations
66. InitiativeLieferkettengesetz
67.EestiRohelineLiikumineEstonianGreenMovement
68.achACT
69.ForumCiv,Sweden
70.FairTradeAdvocacyOffice
71.PlataformaporEmpresas Responsables
72.Partos
73.WeEffect,Sweden
74.AvocatsSansFrontières
75.ObservatoriodeResponsabilidad SocialCorporativa
76.EnvironmentalJusticeFoundation
77.CoordinadoraEstataldeComercio Justo
78.Afrikagrupperna,Sweden
79.WelthausderDiözeseLinz
80.Imaginative and prescient, theSwedish civilservants’ union
81.CleanClothesCampaign
82.PowerShift
83.CCFD-TerreSolidaire
84.Initiativepourundevoirde vigilance,Luxembourg
85.GlobalWitness
86.EU-LATAdvocacyNetwork
87.Setem
88.FocusAssociationforSustainable Growth
89.RREUSE
90.SwedishSocietyforNature Conservation
91.GlobalResponsibility–Austrian PlatformforDevelopmentand HumanitarianAid
92.EuropeanCenterforConstitutional andHumanRights(ECCHR)
93.Solsoc
94.ÖGBEUOffice
95.ForestPeoplesProgramme
96.AKEUROPA-AustrianFederal ChamberofLabour-Brussels workplace
97.WWFEuropeanPolicyOffice
98.LaStradaInternational
99.InternationalDalitSolidarity Community
100. 11.11.11,Coalitionfor InternationalSolidarity,Belgium
101. Trócaire, Eire
102. KIOSFoundation,Finland
103. Germanwatch,
104. MinervaBusinessandHuman RightsAssociation
105. Fairfood
106. FEMNETe.V.
107. CulturalSurvival
108. CentreforthePoliticsof Emancipation,Serbia
109. EURawMaterialsCoalition
110. NotreAffaireATous
111. Earthsight
112. PublishWhatYouPay
113. NaturalResourceGovernance Institute(NRGI)
114. RainforestFoundationNorway, Norway
115. SocietyforThreatened Peoples,Switzerland
116. EuropeanFederationofPublic ServicesUnions(EPSU)
117. Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland e.V. (Pals of the Earth Germany)
118. IM, Sweden
119. Securing Indigenous Rights within the Inexperienced Financial system Coalition (SIRGE)
120. Batani Basis
121. The Andrew Lees Belief
122. Ökumenisches Büro für Frieden und Gerechtigkeit e.V.
123. Earthworks
124. Human Rights Legislation Centre
125. ACT Alliance EU
126. BUNDjugend / Younger Pals of the Earth Germany
127. Human Rights Watch
128. FIAN Germany
129. Solidair met Guatemala
130. Lightup Norway
131. Norwegian Helsinki Committee
132. Factlines
133. Christian Council of Norway
134. Norwegian Council for Africa
135. Framtiden i våre hender, Norway
136. Asociación por la Paz y los Derechos Humanos Taula per Mèxic, Catalunya
137. Norwegian Church Help
138. Initiative pour un devoir de vigilance, Luxembourg
139. CorA-Netzwerk für Unternehmensverantwortung (CorA-Community for Company Accountability)
140. CNV Internationaal
141. Trend Revolution
142. Freedom United
143. Heart for Worldwide Environmental Legislation (CIEL)
