Call to make WB, IMF accountable for human rights violations

GENEVA, Aug 9: Multinational corporations and multilateral institutions like the World Bank and the WTO should be made accountable for any human rights violations stemming from their actions and an international oversight mechanism could be set up for this purpose, a UN conference, was told here today.

The MNCs were taken to task for "not doing enough" to ensure that their decisions did not not trample upon human rights obligations while a strong plea was made to encourage the WTO, World Bank and IMF to bring human rights into their mission.

There was a unanimous view that human rights norms must apply to MNCs during the discussion on the impact of activities on transnational corporations on the full enjoyment of economic and social rights at the ongoing annual meeting of the UN sub-commission for the promotion and protection of human rights.

A sub-commission expert Barbara Frey of the US demanded monitoring of specific violations by the MNCs in an effort to promote human rights in the wake of rapid globalisation.

Frey is among the 26 independent experts representing countries from five regional groups established by the UN Human Rights Commission.

The experts including India’s Attorney General Soli Sorabjee are examining questions ranging from elimination of racial discrimination to violation of human rights by terrorism and adverse consequences of economic sanctions on the enjoyment of human rights.

The racial discrimination and xenophobia was one of the key agenda items at the three-week conference during when Sorabjee in his submissions highlighted the Fiji developments.

Likening the Fiji situation to that of an apartheid, Sorabjee asserted that radical discrimination was sought to be legitimised by constitutional provision which ran counter to international instruments on human rights.

Sorabjee called for suitable measures to curb what he called officially sanctioned discrimination.

Taking up the cause of ethnic Indians in Fiji, Sorabjee regretted that several basic human rights including the right of political participation and to hold public office were being denied soley on the basis of race.

On the issue of environmental and labour challenges before the mncs, a US based NGO-natural heritage institute-attacked some multinationals for undermining protection of human rights by providing conditions that threaten the health and safety of workers and exploiting child labour.

The conference was told by 1998 there were 60,000 mncs with thousand of foreign affiliates as against about 700 multinational companies in 1970.

The US institute said there will be no consistency between regulations developed by various bodies concerned about corporate responsibility without a broad based oversight mechanism.

Calling for random analysis of impact of MNCs’ decisions this year on human rights, frey wanted the multinationals to take responsibility to ensure that their actions, at a minimum, do no harm. (PTI)

India, Bangladesh can be natural partners: Bangla President

DHAKA, Aug 9: Bangladesh today urged India to forge a natural partnership in realising the common goal of peace saying the two neighbours share similarity of views on most regional and international issues of common concern.

"Given the mutuality of interests, there can be a natural partnership between the two counties (India and Bangladesh) to complement our efforts for achieving the common goals of peace," Bangladesh President Shahabuddin Ahmed said, while receiving credentials from Manilal Tripathi, who is taking over as India’s New High Commissioner in Dhaka.

Pointing out that in the recent times, there has been considerable forward movement in the bilateral ties between the two countries, Ahmed said Bangladesh attached highest importance to maintaining friendly and good neighbourly relations with India.

"I believe that there are great potentials to expand our close and friendly relations, both in scope and content, in several areas of mutual concern for the benefit of the peoples in two countries.

"we will together seek solutions to issues that may arise in a spirit of accommodation on the basis of mutual respect, trust, and understanding, always mindful of each other’s sensitivities, interests and concerns," Tripathi said.

Tripathi was High Commissioner of India in Mauritius before taking up his present assignment in Dhaka. He succeeds Deb Mukharji, who has since moved to Kathmandu as India’s Ambassador to Nepal.

Tripathi, who joined Indian Foreign Service in 1970, also served as India’s Ambassador to Romania. He has also done a series of assignments in the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi, and in Indian diplomatic missions abroad.(PTI)

Fiji chiefs placed under house arrest as
Army mops up rebels

SUVA, Aug 9: Fiji Army has placed five tribal chiefs under house arrest after they were implicated in the racial violence that has plagued the country since a coup on May 19.

Major Howard Politini, who is spearheading the Army’s campaign against anti-Indian unrest in Fiji’s north, said: "their movements are restricted. They cannot leave the house except to report to the authorities every day."

Among the five chiefs under house arrest is former Information Minister Ratu Josefa Dimuri, who identified himself as a Speight supporter within days of the hostage crisis.

The violence, including the ransacking and looting of Indian businesses and harassment, even kidnapping, of Indian families by armed ethnic pacific islanders, had threatened to turn into a full-scale rebellion on the island of Vanua Levu.

It came as the country’s first ethnic Indian Prime Minister, Mahendra Chaudhry, was being held hostage in the capital Suva in the south of the country by coup leader George Speight and a band of rebels.

Taking his cue from Speight, on July 4 Lt Rupeni Vosayaco led a mutiny in the Army’s Sukanaivalu barracks in Labasa, the north ‘s main town, and took command of the Army arsenal.

Within days, the Labasa police station and others across the island were in the hands of renegade Speight supporters.

The ethnic Indian population found themselves at the mercy of armed outlaws, who terrorised farmers and shopkeepers.

The rebels in Labasa held out until two weeks ago when the Army forced their surrender and began a major mop-up campaign, rounding up 150 rebels and their leaders.

The others put under house arrest were Labasa chief Josefa Ritova, Nadogo chief Ratu Viliame Rovabokola, Nubu chief Ratu Sepeca Sawaki and the chief of Dreketi, Ratu Mavileko Rokocegu.

Most will face a charge of unlawful assembly and were expected to appear in court in the next few days.

They have all been placed under house arrest because the town has no more cells to accommodate all the arrested rebels, said Politini.

Of the 150 rebels arrested, 10 face arson charges for the burning of a farm house and sugar cane crop belonging to deposed President Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara in Seaqaqa, about 40 km out of Labasa. They also torched a taxi parked at the farm house.

So far, 69 rebels have appeared in court and have been released on bail. "We put them into trucks and took them out to their villages in Dreketi," Politini said.

Many of the 37 who appeared in court today were charged with seizing the Government irrigation station in Dreketi.

They have been ordered by the court not to go within a kilometre of the irrigation station, to report twice a week to their local police station and are forbidden to assemble in groups except in Church. The men return to court on August 31.

Politini, who returned to Suva today, said life in Labasa had returned to normal.

He said all rebel weapons stolen from the Army had been confiscated, except for one of two missing rifles.(AFP)

Recovering East Asia lacks quality growth: World Bank

BANGKOK, Aug 9: Although developing countries in East Asia are recovering from the regional economic crisis, many states are not delivering "quality growth" to their citizens, a leading World Bank official said here today.

"Quantity and quality need to go together for real growth," a combination which has not always occurred in developing East Asia, said Vinod Thomas, vice president of the World Bank Institute, the bank’s training arm.

"Though Thailand ranked seventh in the world in GDP per capita growth over the past quarter-century, there is considerable discussion among the public about the value of this growth," he said.

Much of Thailand, Indonesia and other Southeast Asian States’ apparent Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth has been negated by the concurrent destruction of the environment and inequality in access to education, Thomas said.

"The size of a human body grows the more you consume, but the composition of the diet matters more," he said, referring to this ecological destruction.

In several South and Southeast Asian States, especially India and Indonesia, access to education had not improved over the past quarter century, he said.

"No country has achieved sustained growth without substantial and efficient investments in education."

Thomas was speaking at the launch of a World Bank-funded study called "the quality of growth".

The study analysed to what extent developing states had embraced qualitative growth such as income distribution and environmental protection.

Despite environmental and educational problems, developing East Asia has made inroads towards producing high-quality growth, Thomas said.

Over the 10-year period that the World Bank studied, the percentage of the East Asian population living in poverty fell from 26.6 per cent to 15.3 per cent.

The World Bank defines poverty as an individual living on less than one dollar per day.

"The last decade of the 20th century witnessed striking progress in many parts of the world," said Thomas.

In order to further reduce poverty and improve quality of life, states must address qualitative aspects of growth such as greater security of life and a more sustainable environment, the study said.

"Some lower income countries say `why not growth first, clean up later? Why not worry about inequality later?’ But this is not a tenable strategy," Thomas said.

The World Bank believes this broadening of the definition of growth will pay dividends.

"For example, less air and water pollution or less degradation of natural resources can be extremely beneficial to the welfare of the poor because of the positive effects on their health," the study said. (AFP)

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