NGO Watch®

UK Supermarket Chain Discloses Tea, Coffee Suppliers

March 07, 2019

British supermarket chain Marks & Spencer has disclosed its tea and coffee suppliers in response to pressure for supply-chain transparency from nongovernmental organizations attempting to impose a responsibility on large companies to ensure workers receiving “living wages” throughout their complex, global supply chains.
NGOs Criticize H&M Investors for Supply-Chain Labor Standards

March 07, 2019

Two nongovernmental organizations have published a study criticizing Nordic banks with shares in H&M for not placing financial pressure on the apparel company to ensure the workers in its clothing supply chain receive a “living wage.”
NGO Targets Agricultural Suppliers on Social, Environmental Impacts

March 07, 2019

As part of the activist organization’s Behind the Brands Implementation Initiative, Oxfam has identified several agricultural companies it alleges are not implementing the global human rights and environmental agendas in line with the commitments of the food and beverage companies for which they serve as suppliers.
IACHR, Oxfam Partner to Promote Nontraditional Rights

March 06, 2019

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the activist organization Oxfam have signed a five-year agreement to promote human rights in Latin America and the Caribbean, with a particular focus on “economic, social, cultural and environmental rights” in the region.
NGO Promotes Use of Rights Institutions to Fulfill SDGs

March 06, 2019

The Danish Institute for Human Rights describes its plans to promote the need for national human rights institutions (NHRIs) in every country to fulfill the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at this week’s UN Human Rights Council discussion on NHRIs and sustainable development.
Supermarket Works with Oxfam on “Due Diligence” Policy

March 04, 2019

A press release from Oxfam’s Dutch arm applauds, with some reservations, Dutch supermarket chain Albert Heijn for working with the activist organization to form a “human rights and due diligence policy” recognizing that the company is “part of the problem” in not ensuring an appropriate income and conditions for workers in its supply chain.
NGO Demands Enforceable Labor Standards in Fashion Industry

February 22, 2019

The International Labor Rights Forum has published a report calling for the replacement of voluntary initiatives by businesses in the apparel industry on worker safety in their global supply chains with a “worker-centered, worker-driven,” enforceable model forcing clothing brands to adhere to global labor rights standards.
NGOs Sponsor Declaration Seeking to Bolster World Order

February 20, 2019

At the recent Munich Security Conference, a group of former government officials, supported by nongovernmental organizations, published a “Declaration of Principles for Freedom, Prosperity, and Peace” seeking to reinforce the human rights agenda, environmental action, and the global governance system.
NGO Encourages Sovereign Bond Investor Activism in EU

February 20, 2019

The International Federation for Human Rights has published a ranking of the human rights performance of EU member states to encourage sovereign bond investors to take this performance into account and to influence EU governments to improve their respect for a broad range of human rights.
NGO Demands Rights-Based Approach to AI Regulation

February 20, 2019

Nongovernmental organization Article 19 has criticized a report of the European Commission’s High-Level Expert Group on Artificial Intelligence (AI) for relying on voluntary corporate efforts to ensure the ethical future use of AI, calling instead for a regulatory approach requiring the performance of “human rights impact assessments.”