Today, FIDH made two submissions to the United Nations (UN) Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) for the adoption of the List of Issues (LoI) for China, with regard to the situation of economic, social, and cultural rights.
The first submission, jointly made with China Labour Bulletin (CLB), presents key issues of concern and poses 25 questions related to the following areas:
– Deteriorating environment for civil society.
– Non-discrimination.
– Right to work.
– Right to just and favorable conditions of work.
– Right to form and join trade unions.
– Right to social security.
The second submission focuses on China’s extraterritorial obligations (ETOs) - i.e. the specific obligations to respect, protect, and fulfill economic, social, and cultural rights in relation to the business activities of China’s companies abroad.
The FIDH submission provides numerous case studies of violations of economic, social, and cultural rights stemming from the business activities of China’s state-owned companies in selected countries in Latin America and Asia since the previous review of China by the CESCR in May 2014.
The LoI for China will be adopted during the CESCR’s 68th session, which is set to be held from 8 to 12 March 2021 in Geneva, Switzerland.