SOAS Research Online

Abstract

This chapter discusses the developing legal consequences of the increased awareness, specifically the evolution of the debate concerning the extent to which multinational enterprises (MNEs) and other business enterprises should observe, and be bound by, human rights standards. It discusses wider context of the debate on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and, in particular, the extension of human rights responsibilities to corporate actors. The chapter provides an essential conceptual and policy background to the current debate. It also discusses the major substantive principles that may be said to form the foundations of MNE human rights responsibilities, and offers a guide to the most important international instruments in this field. The chapter examines the practical issues of monitoring and implementation of corporate human rights performance. It deals with the question of how to ensure that the substantive human rights obligations of MNEs and other business enterprises are actually upheld.