A factory in Dhaka, in Bangladesh, recalls the fire that the shopping centre of Rana Square suffered just a month ago three years ago. Hundreds of deceased workers then worked in the manufacture of fabrics for known brands in Europe and North America. The news about the exploitation of children working in industry is published at any time and, generally speaking, we see publications and reports on the labour abuses suffered in many and varied production chains of large companies.

The excesses of large companies and their annual turnover figures, which often exceed the same GDP of some countries, are united. On the contrary, states’ economic capacities are weakening compared to large companies, as well as their overall control capacity. In the distribution of global economic power, States have less and less power in favour of large transnational corporations. The fact that these companies leave the country of origin behind makes effective public control of them difficult, and it is even more difficult to judge whether human rights violations are committed.

On the other hand, for international law, companies are not binding on the actors with rights and obligations, and the international treaties for the protection of human rights that are established are binding only on the signatory states of them, so they do not oblige companies to do so. Companies operating outside their home territory are thus often in a “dark” space with regard to respect for human rights. In fact, their activity is not controlled by the State of origin, but by the legality of the country where they operate, which has great flexibility in its rules and laws to attract large foreign investment.

The companies that make up the IBEX35 of the Spanish State also know and take direct advantage of this legal reality. The Observatory on Corporate Social Responsibility has just published 12. The report concludes that IBEX35 companies operate in 20 countries at risk of extreme human rights violations. The report notes that 32 of these companies operate in at least one of these countries. The Observatory notes that 23 out of 35 companies report on policies to respect human rights within the company, but when we want to know the degree of verification of these policies the situation is not so positive. Only fourteen companies mention concrete mechanisms and procedures to ensure respect for human rights. In fact, only four companies acknowledge that they have identified risks to human rights and account for the measures taken to combat the negative effects of their activity on human rights.

The agenda of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and social movements increasingly highlights the need for an international pact to implement binding legal requirements in the field of business and human rights. The United Nations Council decided two years ago to set up an intergovernmental working group to build that pact. The second round of meetings of this working group will be held in Geneva at the end of October. The key to success lies in prioritizing human rights in the general interest over the thirst for profit of companies.