UDHR, a document signed by representatives from all regions of the world, provides the fundamental human rights that everyone must enjoy. The Declaration was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on 10 December 1948 (un.org). Article 8 of UDHR states that “Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law” (un.org). Given this provision, it should be ensured that all human rights victims of business operations shall receive an appropriate and effective remedy to rectify the human rights abuses that they experience. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) Article 14 of CEDAW (www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw) which pertains particularly to rural women, provides : “State Parties shall take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women in rural areas in order to ensure, on a basis of equality of men and women, that they participate in and benefit from rural development.” It further states women’s rights, some of which are as follows: • “To have access to adequate health care facilities, including information, counselling and services in family planning; • To benefit directly from social security programmes; • To obtain all types of training and education, formal and non-formal, including that relating to functional literacy, as well as, inter alia, the benefit of all community and extension services, in order to increase their technical proficiency; • To have access to agricultural credit and loans, marketing facilities, appropriate technology and equal treatment in land and agrarian reform as well as in land resettlement schemes; • To enjoy adequate living conditions, particularly in relation to housing, sanitation, electricity and water supply, transport and communications.” In addition to Art. 14 of CEDAW, General Recommendation No. 34 on the rights of rural women (CEDAW/C/GC/34) states specific propositions on how State Parties can protect the rights of rural women. Some of the recommendations to State Parties are as follows: • “Ensure that legal frameworks are non-discriminatory and guarantee access to justice to rural women. • Address specific threats posed to rural women by climate change, natural disasters, land and soil degradation, water pollution, droughts, floods, desertification, pesticides and agro-chemicals, extractive industries, monocultures, bio-piracy, and loss of biodiversity, particularly agro-biodiversity. They should alleviate and mitigate these threats and ensure that rural women enjoy a safe, clean and healthy environment. • Uphold extraterritorial obligations with respect to rural women, inter alia, by: not interfering, directly or indirectly, with the enjoyment of their rights; taking regulatory measures to prevent any actor under their jurisdiction, including private individuals, companies and public entities, from infringing or abusing the rights of rural women outside their territory; and, ensuring that international cooperation and development assistance, whether bilateral or multilateral, advance the rights of rural women outside their territory. Appropriate and effective remedies should be available to affected rural women when a State party has violated its extraterritorial obligations. • Eliminate all forms of discrimination against disadvantaged and marginalized groups of rural women. For example, State parties should ensure that disadvantaged and marginalized groups of rural women including indigenous; afro-descendent; ethnic and 8