As a contribution to mainstreaming the UNGP BHR, the Asian NGO
Coalition for Agrarian Reform and Rural Development (ANGOC), in partnership
with Land Watch Asia (LWA) members and International Land Coalition (ILC)
members in Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Nepal, and the Philippines,
are implementing the program “Defending Land Rights and Human Rights
Defenders.” This initiative aims to contribute to the goal of reducing land rights
violations and ensuring that the right to land is recognized as a human right –
as land right organizations and communities become part of the regional and
country dialogues.
At the country level, CSO partners engage NHRIs, the broader CSO
community, and the government in the dialogue process in relation to the
formulation and monitoring of UNGP BHR. Six country papers were prepared and
discussed in five countries in order to: a) provide an overview of the relevance
of the UNGP BHR in the context of land and agricultural investments, b) identify
the challenges faced in mainstreaming the UNGP BHR, and c) formulate key
recommendations from the consultation processes.
This study has the following objectives:
r provide an overview of the UN Guiding Principles for Business and
Human Rights;
r describe the current status and process of adoption and implementation
of the UNGP BHR in selected Asian countries; and,
r recommend ways to mainstream the UNGP BHR in these countries and
in Asia in general.
Methodology
This study was spearheaded by Land Watch Asia and the Asian NGO
Coalition (ANGOC) as part of the advocacy campaign to have land rights
recognized as human rights by the international community. This study
covers six countries in Asia: Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Nepal,
and Philippines. For each country, experienced land rights advocacy NGOs
conducted desk reviews, undertook field research, and drafted policy briefs
on the status of UNGP BHR implementation. They also conducted country
workshops in order to validate the research findings. Importantly, the CSOs
also engaged their country’s national human rights institution (NHRI) – the
independent human rights constitutional body. These conversations included
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Upholding Land Rights amidst the Land Rush