The State Duty to Protect Against Business-Related Human Rights Abuses. Unpacking Pillar 1 and 3 of the UN Guiding Principles on Human Rights and Business

Abstract

The purpose of this working paper is to explore and unpack the human rights duties of the state when dealing with business enterprises activities as recalled and detailed in the United Nations’ Guiding Principles on Business and Human rights. The working paper considers state duties in the following three parts: overall issues such as the state’s approach to its duty to protect, state regulatory and policy functions and the question of extraterritoriality (part 1); specific issues covered by the UNGPs such state businesses, privatisation and public procurement, conflict-affected areas and international economic agreements concluded by states (part 2); and finally state duties pertaining to access to remedy (part 3). Hence this working paper covers all the guiding principles under the UNGPs Pillar 1 as well as the relevant state principles under Pillar 3.

Keywords: business and human rights, state duty, remedy