This link was published on 6 April 2020
China, the world’s largest timber importer, issued a new draft of its first Forest Law update in 20 years that adds a prohibition on buying illegally sourced timber. It will be effective on 01 July 2020. Issues around enforcement, such as the burden of proof being on government departments, traders being out of scope, and low penalties, remain.
Please find more details about the law here. (EH&CH)
P.S. Recently, we attended an APEC region workshop hosted by APEC Expert Group on Illegal Logging and Associated Trade (EGILAT) in Malaysia on forest law governance. This table captures the major and emerging forest law regulations in the region.
- Timber
- illegally sourced timber
- Forest Law
- Illegal Logging and Associated Trade
This link was published on 6 April 2020
The UK is to spearhead a major global crackdown on illegal timber and deforestation, with plans to form a coalition of developing countries against the trade as part of its hosting of crunch UN climate talks this year. All countries are expected to come forward with tougher plans to reduce global emissions as part of COP 26, and experts have said this will only happen if the UK takes the lead in forming a coalition of small and big developing countries, including forested African nations and Indonesia, as well as major economies such as the US, China, India and the EU. Offering assistance to developing countries, in the form of finance and technical expertise, will be vital to that effort.
- Middle East & Africa
- Europe
- Illegal logging
- Deforestation
- Illegal Timber
- UN climate talks
- global emissions
This link was published on 26 March 2020
China is stepping up restrictions on the production, sale and use of single-use plastic products, according to the state planner, as it seeks to tackle one of the country’s biggest environmental problems. Plastic bags to be banned in all major cities by end of 2020, and banned in all cities and towns in 2022, says state planner.
- single-use plastic products
- environmental problems
- Plastic bag ban
This link was published on 5 March 2020
In November 2019, labour rights NGO China Labour Watch (CLW) released a report raising allegations of labour abuses faced by workers at five factories producing for international toy brands in Guangdong Province, China. Abuses documented by CLW include low wages, excessive overtime, inadequate health and safety protections, poor living conditions in worker dormitories, restrictions to freedom of association, discrimination, sexual harassment and gender-based violence. Brand companies (including Disney, Lego, BuzzBee etc.) are taking actions.
- Business and Human Rights
- Discrimination
- labour abuse & sexual harassment
- labour rights NGO
- China Labour Watch
- Labour abuse
- Guangdong Province
- Low wages
- excessive overtime
- inadequate health and safety protections
- Poor living conditions
- restrictions to freedom of association
- sexual harassment
- gender-based violence
- Disney
- Lego
- BuzzBee
This link was published on 5 March 2020
Premier Li Keqiang has signed a State Council decree to publish a regulation on guaranteeing payments of wages to rural migrant workers. The regulation requires market entities should take the lead under the supervision of government and society including labour unions, social medias etc. It states employers must pay employment wage in full and on time through bank transfers or cash. It also clarifies the responsibilities of employers for paying off arrears to migrant workers and corresponding legal account abilities for any breach of the regulation. This regulation will go into effect on 1st of May, 2020.
- Regulation
- Chinese goverment
- Migrant workers
- Wages
- Premier Li Keqiang
- State Council decree
- labour unions
- social media
This link was published on 5 March 2020
Includes company responses, the latest jobs and events announcements.
• Declared a global emergency, the novel coronavirus impacts workers’ rights around the world as employers seek to protect business and supply chains.
• Migrant workers from Malaysia reportedly return home without owed wages as employers try to force them to stay.
• Employees of American Airlines concerned about unknown health threats file a USA lawsuit to halt flights to China; airline has stated it is “taking precautions”.
• Technology firms allegedly maintain manufacturing operations despite government calls for companies to halt work to stop coronavirus spread.
- Business and Human Rights
- Supply chain
- Goverment
- Migrant workers
- manufacturing
- Covid-19
- coronavirus
- WuHan
- Global emergency
- Workers rights
- Business
- Employees of American Airlines
- USA
- USA Lawsuit
- Technology firms
- coronavirus spread
This link was published on 24 December 2019
The trend of setting up a national inventory of chemicals – already seen in China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan – is moving south. The Philippines and Vietnam have existing inventories, while Laos, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia also have plans for one.
Despite regulatory hurdles that might have caused due to disparate regulations and approaches across the region, the overall trend – if slower than other regions – is a shift in focus from primarily GHS-based requirements towards more comprehensive, risk-based chemicals management regimes that mandate registration before use.
- South East Asia & Indian Continent
- GHS-based requirements
- risk-based chemicals
This link was published on 24 December 2019
The US Customs Border Authority has banned the import of products from certain companies accused of modern slavery violations. The law came into effect in 2016 but this action shows that it can have teeth.
One of the five products/companies was a garment factory in Xinjiang, China, and another one a Malaysian rubber glove factory. The latter was accused of withholding wages, excessive recruitment fees and withholding of passports in a Guardian report back in December 2018 here.
- Thomson Reuters Foundation
- US
- US Customs Border
- Modern slavery violations
- Xinjiang
- Rubber glove factory
- Witholding wages
- excessive recruitment fees
- witholding passports
- Guardian report
This resource was published on 10 October 2019
Report
This is the end of year report for the special project improving Health and Safety in print factories in China. The report summaries this year's activities, impact achieved and lessons learnt for the year ahead
This link was published on 4 September 2019
Around 150 Yong’an residents are suing the local government and its partner forest management company, Guangxi Lee & Man Forestry Technology Ltd, for violating a clause in contract law where a business must not damage public interests. Villagers claim the eucalyptus, a thirsty plantation species, is draining the local water supply from three mountain springs, leaving very little for farming and domestic use in the village. This is the first case of this kind in China.
- Eucalyptus
- Timber Plantation Flourishes
- 150 Yong’an residents
- Local goverment
- forest management company
- Guangxi Lee & Man Forestry Technology Ltd
- public interests
- thirsty plantation species
- ning the local water supply from three mountain springs