A/HRC/44/43 Indigenous Peoples.52 This issue was addressed in resolution 1/18 of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the Organization of American States. E. Gender dimensions of business and human rights abuses and corruption 22. Women and girls experience the adverse impacts of business activities differently and disproportionately as compared to men and boys, and face additional barriers to remedies.53 The Working Group has developed a gender framework and provided recommendations regarding integrating gender perspectives when implementing the Guiding Principles.54 Corruption in the business sector may increase women’s economic marginalization, including by limiting their access to credit and finance. In the informal sector, women may be more likely to be asked for bribes and illegally collected tax payments.55 Corruption enables intersecting forms of discrimination, exclusion, unfairness, prejudice and inequality. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has highlighted the serious impact of corruption on individuals facing discrimination, including women and children.56 As women experience corruption differently to men,57 a gender lens should be applied to all anti-corruption efforts. The Working Group has observed that States and businesses must be sensitive to how women experience adverse human rights impacts differently.58 IV. The State duty to protect against abuse by business enterprises 23. Under pillar I of the Guiding Principles, States have a duty to protect individuals and communities from potential and actual business-related human rights abuses across sectors. As business enterprises can have a significant impact on almost all internationally recognized human rights, this duty is profound. Strong preventive measures are needed to prevent business-related human rights abuses alongside corruption, noting corruption’s corollary effect on human rights. The Human Rights Council, in its resolution 41/9, stressed that preventive measures were one of the most effective means of countering corruption and of avoiding its negative impact on the enjoyment of human rights. It called for the strengthening of prevention measures at all levels, and underlined that one key aspect of preventive measures was to address the needs of those in vulnerable situations who might be the first victims of corruption. The preventive approach is embedded in the Guiding Principles. A. Policy coherence 24. Given the interlinkages between corruption and business-related human rights abuses, States should give effect to greater coherence in policy integration. In the business and human rights and anti-corruption spaces, States encounter different norms and standards, for example the United Nations Convention against Corruption, the Guiding Principles, the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the OECD anti-bribery convention, as well as regional instruments such as the African Union Convention on 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 8 A/71/291, paras. 67–74. See A/72/162, A/HRC/41/43/Add.1 and A/HRC/38/48/Add.1. See A/HRC/41/43. See www.undp.org/content/dam/aplaws/publication/en/publications/womensempowerment/corruption-accountability-and-gender-understanding-the-connection/Corruptionaccountability-and-gender.pdf. See www.oas.org/es/cidh/informes/pdfs/CorrupcionDDHHES.pdf. See contribution from Sweden, and www.u4.no/publications/the-gendered-impact-of-corruption-whosuffers-more-men-or-women. A/72/162, para. 82.

Select target paragraph3

Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents