Africa

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Some 52 percent of the apparel suppliers said the prices paid were often lower than the production costs. Photo: Star/file

By Star Business Report
May 5 2019 (IPS-Partners)

(The Daily Star) – Most of the western buyers are more concerned about the prices of garment items than the working conditions in the factories they source from, according to a new study by the Human Rights Watch.

Per unit price was the main concern for 78 percent of the apparel buyers from Asia, found the study by the New York-based non-governmental organisation.

Only 42 percent of the buyers take working conditions at the contractors’ factories into consideration in selecting the suppliers, the study also said.

Some 52 percent of the apparel suppliers said the prices paid were often lower than the production costs, while 81 percent said they agreed to such terms to secure future orders.

According to suppliers, 75 percent of the buyers across different sectors were unwilling to adjust prices when the statutory minimum wages were raised.

Even among the willing buyers, there was on average a 12-week time lag before they adjusted prices, the study said.

Moreover, low purchase prices and shorter times for manufacturing products, unfair penalties, and poor payment terms by the brands exacerbate risks for labour abuses in factories.

Often, bad purchasing practices directly undermine the efforts brands are making to try to ensure rights-respecting conditions in factories that produce their wares, said the study that was prepared based on interviews with workers and experts in some Asian countries including Bangladesh.

“They squeeze suppliers so hard financially that the suppliers face powerful incentives to cut costs in ways that exacerbate workplace abuses and heighten brands’ exposure to human rights risks.”

Many brands demand their suppliers maintain rights-respecting workplaces, but then incentivise them to do the opposite, the study said.

“The HRW report rightly identifies speed to market as a concept that reduces lead times for us,” said Rubana Huq, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).

Indeed, the brands with poor sourcing, poor forecasting practices and shorter lead times add to the woes of garment manufacturers.

“Suppliers often get pressured by buyers’ hard negotiating practices,” Huq said in an email reply to The Daily Star. The prices brands pay to suppliers can undercut factories’ ability to ensure decent working conditions.

This story was originally published by The Daily Star, Bangladesh

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By Geneva Centre
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 3 2019 (IPS-Partners)

(Geneva Centre) – At the Fifth World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue held from 2-3 May 2019 in Baku, the Executive Director of the Geneva Centre for Human Rights Advancement and Global Dialogue Ambassador Idriss Jazairy paid tribute to the inspiring role of the United Arab Emirates in hosting the historic meeting of 4 February 2019 between HH Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al Azhar His Eminence Ahmad Al-Tayib and which led to the adoption of the Joint Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together.

Ambassador Jazairy made this statement at the High-Level Ministerial Panel on “Mobilizing Intercultural Dialogue for Concrete Transformative Action” of 2 May, that was chaired by the Minister of Culture of the Republic of Azerbaijan Abulfas Garayev and attended by high-level government officials from more than 30 countries.

Ambassador Jazairy stated that the Joint Document on Human Fraternity gives concrete expression to the “ideal of restoring the aspiration for a world living in peace and harmony.” Ambassador remarked that the Joint Document on Human Fraternity expresses the same ambitious ideas contained in the World Conference Outcome Declaration on “Moving Towards Greater Spiritual Convergence Worldwide in Support of Equal Citizenship Rights.” The latter was adopted as an outcome to the 25 June 2018 World Conference on religions and equal citizenship rights that the Geneva Centre organized with the support of the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

During the 3 May panel debate on “Greater Spiritual Convergence for Equal Citizenship Rights” held as a breakout session during the Fifth World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue, a resolution was unanimously adopted by the participants endorsing the Joint Document on Human Fraternity and the World Conference Outcome Declaration.

The said resolution “welcomes the inspiring Joint Declaration of His Holiness Pope Francis and H.Em. Sheikh Ahmad Al-Tayyib appealing to decision-makers and societies to reject the hijacking of religions to incite ‘hatred, violence, extremism and blind fanaticism’, to cherish the ‘values of tolerance and fraternity that are promoted and encouraged by religions’ as well as to promote the concept of ‘full citizenship’ and reject the discriminatory use of the term ‘minorities engendering feelings of isolation and inferiority.”

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By Geneva Centre
BAKU, AZERBAIJAN, May 3 2019 (IPS-Partners)

(Geneva Centre) – In times when religions have been considered as a source of hatred and division, harnessing its collective energy in the pursuit of equal citizenship rights is needed more than ever, concluded a group of eminent experts on inter-faith dialogue during a panel debate.

The conference entitled “Greater Spiritual Convergence for Equal Citizenship Rights” was organized on 3 May by the Geneva Centre for Human Rights Advancement and Global Dialogue as a breakout session of the Fifth World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue held from 2-3 May in Baku, Azerbaijan.

The conference was attended by high-level officials from different countries including the Minister of Culture of Algeria Meriem Merdaci.

In his opening remarks, the Executive Director of the Geneva Centre Ambassador Idriss Jazairy stated that the present meeting was held as a follow-up to the 25 June 2018 World Conference on religions and equal citizenship rights.

“At this international meeting, it was agreed that it is high time that decision makers join hands to initiate a global effort to ensure that our equally shared humanity is reflected in equal citizenship rights not only in theory, but in practice,” highlighted Ambassador Jazairy.

As an outcome to the World Conference, the Geneva Centre’s Executive Director highlighted that more than 50 decision-makers worldwide adopted an Outcome Declaration entitled “Moving Towards Greater Spiritual Convergence Worldwide in Support of Equal Citizenship Rights.”

The said declaration, Ambassador Jazairy remarked, appeals to decision-makers to unite in a common endeavour for the preservation of dignity, to contribute to the realization of human rights and to promote the effective enjoyment of equal citizenship rights.

The Geneva Centre’s Executive Director stated that with the adoption of the Joint Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together, on 4 February 2019 by HH Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al Azhar His Eminence Sheikh Ahmad Al-Tayyib in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, a growing consensus has emerged on the importance of promoting equal citizenship rights as a vector to peace and stability.

“Global decision-makers must therefore take the initiative to identify a global citizenship model that is compatible with diversity and respect of human rights of people irrespective of religious beliefs, denominations and/or value systems. He encouraged all to work together to build more tolerant, peaceful and coexisting societies, for our present and future generations,” Ambassador Jazairy said.

In his statement, the Deputy Chairman of the State Committee on Religious Associations of the Republic of Azerbaijan Gunduz Ismayilov stated that tolerance and respect for the other are integral components of the culture of Azerbaijan. It is not driven – he said – by the need to abide by legal norms as Azerbaijan has for centuries been a multicultural society and a feeling of mutual empathy towards the other.

The Executive Director of the Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for Dialogue between Cultures Ambassador Nabil Al Sharif presented the endeavours of the Anna Lindh Foundation to promote peaceful co-existence within, and between, societies in Europe and in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. He referred in particular to a handbook entitled “Intercultural Trends and Social Change in the Euro-Mediterranean Region.”

The Chairman of the Institute for Policy, Advocacy and Governance Syed Munir Khasru argued that the world society is witnessing the rise of divisive narratives that reject tolerance and diversity. Although all religions converge in their endeavours to promote a more just, peaceful and inclusive society, the decline of multilateralism and the surge of violent extremism threaten diverse and multi-cultural societies. The recent terrorist attacks in New Zealand and in Sri Lanka are telling examples – he said – of this woeful trend and that injustice is spreading out.

The Coordinator of the UN Inter-Agency Task Force on Religion and Development and UNFPA Senior Advisor Azza Karam remarked that there is an increasing interest in ‘using’ religious leaders to promote freedom of religion and belief (FoRB) or religious liberty issues. “By and large, this emphasis on FoRB is promoted by a handful of western governments. In all cases, the emergence of FoRB as a key area of engagement, can often come at the expense of increasing multi-religious collaboration around many other features of human rights and sustainable development concerns,” Dr Karam emphasized.

Programme Executive for Interreligious Dialogue and Cooperation at the World Council of Churches Reverend Peniel Rajkumar spoke about the role of faith actors to convert dialogue on equal citizenship rights into concrete action. He said that the challenge for religions today is to use the cornerstone of pluralism to build just and inclusive communities. However, this task is rendered all the more impossible in contexts where religion has been violently recruited as an ally of populist nationalisms and xenophobia. To overcoming this woeful trend, Reverend Rajkumar highlighted the importance of bridging the gap between spiritual will and collective political action. It is no secret – he said – that there are spiritual resources within different religious traditions that remind their followers both of the interrelatedness of the entire humanity and the need to ensure the wellbeing of the ‘other’.

To conclude the meeting, a resolution was adopted supporting the holding of the historical meeting on 4 February 2019 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates between HH Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al Azhar and endorsing the World Conference Outcome Declaration on “Moving Towards Greater Spiritual Convergence Worldwide in Support of Equal Citizenship Rights.”

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By Geneva Centre
BAKU, AZERBAIJAN, May 3 2019 (IPS-Partners)

(Geneva Centre) – The Head of the Religious Community in Azerbaijan His Virtue Shaikh-ul Islam Allahshukur Pashazadeh invited the Executive Director of the Geneva Centre for Human Rights Advancement and Global Dialogue Ambassador Idriss Jazairy to a private audience in his residence in Baku.

During the visit, His Virtue Pashazadeh expressed his appreciation to the endeavours of the Geneva Centre to promote mutual understanding and cooperative relations between people and societies through the holding of the 25 June 2018 World Conference on religions and equal citizenship rights that received strong support from the Secretary General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres.

His Virtue Pashazadeh and Ambassador Jazairy agreed that the Caucasus Muslims Board and the Geneva Centre are united by their vision to promote equal citizenship rights in multi-cultural and multi-religious societies worldwide.

In light of this discussion, the participants highlighted the need to capitalize on the momentum of the World Conference, the Joint Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together signed on 4 February 2019 by HH Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al Azhar Ahmad Al-Tayib in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, as well as the Fifth World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue held in Baku to examine inventive ways to carry the process forward to harness the collective energy of religions in the pursuit of equal citizenship rights.

His Virtue Pashazadeh invited the Executive Director of the Geneva Centre to co-organize the 19 June 2019 conference on “From the Inter-faith, inter-civilizational cooperation to human solidarity” to be organized together with the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue in Vienna, Austria.

Ambassador Jazairy accepted for the Geneva Centre to be a co-sponsor of this important initiative and agreed to present a statement in Vienna on this occasion

The meeting was concluded by an official dinner that was attended by high-level government officials including the Minister of Culture of the Republic of Azerbaijan Abulfas Garayev.

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