With only voluntary corporate social responsibility measures in place, Canada leaves the door open for Canadian mining and energy companies and their business partners to cause more harm to people and the environment.

For years, Global partners have reported on human rights abuses caused by extractive companies linked to Canada. 

KAIROS and networks along with other Canadian civil society actors have responded by calling for mandatory legislation and measures to hold Canadian companies accountable. 

The Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise, which the Government of Canada established to respond to corporate misconduct of Canadian companies operating abroad falls dismally short, as it does not have the mandate to compel documents to undertake investigations.

The Ombudsperson’s mandate, among other toothless actions, is to “offer informal mediation services” to Canadian companies (energy, mining, and garment) and affected communities.

KAIROS holds that the Canadian government must institute multiple and complementary legally-binding measures that require Canadian companies and their business partners (for example, subsidiaries and supply chains) to prevent and avoid causing harm to people and the planet.

The next Government of Canada must:

1.     empower the Ombudsperson to investigate allegations of human rights or environmental violations committed by Canadian companies, and  

2.     enact mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence (mHREDD) legislation, which Canada’s international human rights parliamentary subcommittee has recommended.

Due diligence means that Canadian companies operating abroad—as well as companies selling goods in Canada—and their business partners would be required to undergo a process to identify risks, consult/obtain consent from rights holders, and outline how their operations would not cause human rights and environmental harm.

Several countries in Europe have already enacted or are in the process of developing human rights due diligence legislation. In this sense Canada is lagging behind on mHREDD legislation.

In May 2021, the Canadian Network on Corporate Accountability (CNCA) released draft mHREDD model legislation called the Corporate Respect for Human Rights and the Environment Abroad Act.

KAIROS, a CNCA member, endorses the Corporate Respect for Human Rights and the Environment Abroad Act and calls upon the Government of Canada to use it as a blueprint.

The Corporate Respect for Human Rights and the Environment Abroad Act would:

1.     Establish a corporate duty on companies linked to Canada to prevent human rights abuse and environmental harms.

2.     Require companies to conduct due diligence and publicly report on the steps taken to prevent human rights and environmental harms.

3.     Include significant consequences for companies that cause harm and/or fail to conduct due diligence.

To learn more about The Corporate Respect for Human Rights and the Environment Abroad Act, read the CNCA’s executive summary and infographic. 

While the campaign in support of the Corporate Respect for Human Rights and the Environment Abroad Act will launch in late September, you can take action now.

Please also consult KAIROS’ 2021 election resource, which contains a section on corporate accountability and gender justice and stay tuned for further details this fall.

Read KAIROS’ page on the Corporate Respect for Human Rights & the Environment Abroad Act for more background information.

For more on the intersection of Indigenous rights, gender and ecological justice, and corporate accountability, please visit Mother Earth and Resource Extraction: Women Defending Land and Water—MERE Hub, for short. MERE Hub is a living digital resource hub that supports women human rights defenders and recognizes both their achievements and the challenges they face in the protection of land and water.