Abstract
Abstract : The responsibility to observe and promote human rights has always been considered to be that of the state. It is the state that must ensure that its citizens and the people within its jurisdiction are afforded human rights and that these rights are protected and observed by everyone. The rationale behind this is the fact that in order to have law and order in society the state must be somehow superior to individuals. The general public would elect public representatives and entrust them with public powers in return for protection and advancement of their rights. The elected public representatives are expected to collect taxes and promulgate laws that must also improve the livelihood of the general public. There are several other role players in the human rights space other than just the state. Nonstate actors including companies have a role to play in observing and promoting human rights. Through their actions, companies are responsible for some forms of human rights violations and in some instances gross human rights violations. A debate on whether the responsibility of non-state actors to observe and promote human rights should be undertaken voluntarily or mandatorily through legislation has been ongoing for a while. Many companies purport to observe and promote human rights through corporate social responsibility initiatives or activities. These companies undertake corporate social responsibility initiatives voluntarily and largely consider it to be a philanthropic gesture. Most countries around the world adopted a voluntary approach as far as the responsibility of non-state actors to promote and observe human rights is concerned, only a few countries have legislated the responsibility of non-state actors to observe and promote human rights. In this minor dissertation I will critically evaluate the approach adopted by South Africa and India to encourage corporate compliance with human rights. These two jurisdictions under review adopted completely different approaches when it comes to corporate compliance with human rights. The South African jurisdiction has a hybrid system of corporate governance. Certain practices of good governance that encourage corporate compliance with human rights have been legislated. These practices are complemented by widely accepted voluntary principles and leading practices of good governance. In India, lawmakers have moved to legislate corporate social responsibility as a way of enforcing corporate compliance with human rights.
LL.M. (Corporate Law)