John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank all of the witnesses for coming before the committee. Unfortunately, it is a remote meeting but that does not take from the evidence they have laid before the committee this afternoon. It is very damning evidence, with some very serious asks, not just of this committee but also of the EU and the Irish Government. It would be safe to say we are seeing communities throughout the world being exploited for profit. That is touched on very comprehensively in the latest report from the coalition, Make It Your Business, which contains damning evidence of the human rights violations and abuses going on across the world, with everything from Texaco to the ESB to human rights abuses in Uganda and Kenya by Tullow Oil and Total Energies all laid out very graphically. We see huge volumes of land being seized, forests being cut down and rivers being poisoned, all in the name of business. We also see communities facing very violent forced evictions, land grabs, brutal physical assaults and murder.

I welcome our guest, Rosa María Mateus Parra from Columbia. Unfortunately, Colombia is one of the worst countries in the world for murders associated with assaults on human rights defenders. There is an account of 227 human rights defenders being murdered in Colombia last year, making it the worst country in the world for assaults and murders of human rights defenders. Next week, this committee will continue its work on the whole area of human rights violations and we will have Mr. Eamon Gilmore before the committee. I know our witnesses will be familiar with some of the work by Mr. Gilmore, who is currently the EU special representative for human rights and previously was the special envoy on the peace process in Colombia. We will have an opportunity to question Mr. Gilmore on many of those issues associated not just with human rights in general but particularly in Colombia.

It is shameful there are no legally binding business and human rights regulations to stop the exploitation and abuse. As has been alluded to and quite graphically portrayed by all of our witnesses, voluntary measures have failed to prevent the abuses and are simply not strong enough to stop them, hold the businesses to account and ensure due diligence is being carried out. It is safe to say many corporations have more economic clout than many of small countries across the world where they are happy to operate and continue to exploit. We cannot expect them to regulate themselves without a strong global legal framework in place to which they have to adhere.

I agree that we need mandatory, gender responsive human rights and environmental due diligence legislation both in Ireland and the EU. It is very disappointing, to say the least, that despite repeated rounds of negotiations, the EU and Ireland have not signed up to a binding UN charter. I ask our witnesses why they think there is such a reluctance at that level to sign up to something that is binding. Has Ireland made its official position known with regard to a UN charter and has it made any statements in that regard?

This committee has done work in terms of trying to address some of the concerns that Mr. O’Neill in particular touched on around the Cerrejón mine in Colombia. The committee embarked on writing to the Colombian ambassador and the ESB earlier in the year and we got some correspondence back from the ESB in February. It said there is a complaint by the Global Legal Action Network from the national contact point for Ireland. It goes on to say that, in the period between 2015 and 2018, ESB purchases made up only 2% of the volumes but it seems to suggest that it has stopped receiving coal from Cerrejón. Perhaps Mr. O’Neill will be able to answer on whether that is the case or whether the ESB is still bringing in coal. It is very concerning given the level of human rights abuses, violations and murder, not just in Colombia but particularly at that mine.

The issue of Airbnb is also very concerning. Ireland is the first EU country to formally declare that Israel has illegally de facto annexed Palestinian land yet we still have the Airbnb headquarters here in Dublin, although it is using land that has been illegally confiscated on its platforms and it plans to rent or lease it out to people. This is very concerning and it again highlights the need for this legislation.

A UK Government watchdog recently found that JCB failed to carry out due diligence and human rights checks with regard to the use of JCB equipment to illegally demolish Palestinian homes. I might get a comment in that regard as to what system is in place in the UK.

Is it part of a voluntary system? What type of repercussions do we think might come from a finding such as that of the UK Government watchdog? We know that JCB equipment is utilised to a large extent for the illegal demolition of Palestinian homes.

This legislation is badly needed. We need legislation in the State and we also need it at EU level. I want to take Mr. Walsh up on his request that the committee take the lead on this issue. It is incumbent on us to invite before the committee not just the Minister for Foreign Affairs but also the Tánaiste, who has a responsibility for trade, to brief us on the Irish position on the UN treaty, our involvement in the legislation going through the EU and the prospect of putting in place legislation that is critically needed in the State to ensure that due diligence in respect of human rights and business is put in place. It is the right thing to do. According to opinion polls, 81% of Irish people want Irish businesses and companies to behave ethically and to be held to account when they do not do so . I have asked several questions and I hope the witnesses will be able to answer them. If there is an opportunity later, I would like to come back in.