On 15 October 2007, John Ruggie, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General on human rights and transnational corporations, issued a reply to the joint letter of 151 NGOs, saying he had “neither the mandate nor the capacity” to work on their proposals.

On 15 October 2007, John Ruggie, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General on human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, replied to the joint letter of 151 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) sent to him on 10 October. He wrote that he has had “neither the mandate nor the capacity” to work on their proposals.

FORUM-ASIA was among the NGOs that urged him to prioritise four issues in his mandate, including spreading awareness of the need for global standards on business and human rights to be outlined in a UN declaration or similar instrument. The letter contained proposals for recommendations that he may include in his final report to the Council.

In his reply, Ruggie clarified his mandate saying, “I have had neither the mandate nor the capacity to act in the role you urge me to play now and recommend for the future.” For the rest of his mandate, he said he will be guided by “the objective of building a stronger international human rights regime to govern the activities of all actors, including corporations, through means that promise to be effective and are achievable.”

In response, Geoffrey Chandler, the Founder-Chair of Amnesty International UK Business Group, said Ruggie’s response does not give hope for UN-endorsed human rights principles for companies and added, “I beg you to think again.”

John Ruggie's response to the joint open letter (in .pdf)

151 Organisations’ Proposals on Issues Relating to Business and Human Rights
Wednesday, 10 October 2007