WORKING GROUP STATEMENT OF ARTICLE 5.3 LATIN AMERICA
BAT infiltrates the Government of Canada and development cooperation to control snuff
In recent weeks it has transpired that the President the Directory Research Centre for the Development of Canada (IDRC for its acronym in English), Barbara McDougall , an influential political, it has also been acting as Director of Imperial Tobacco Canada (local branch BAT ) in the area of \u200b\u200bsocial responsibility. " The IDRC is a public agency of the Government of Canada created in 1970 to promote public health and combating poverty, so this situation provides a clear violation of Article 5.3 of the Framework Convention for the Control of Snuff, instrument signed and ratified by the Government of Canada.
The Art. 5.3 guidelines say h Ay fundamental and irreconcilable conflict between the interests of industry and snuff of public health policies. Therefore, the parties should reject associations with the tobacco industry and ensure that any interaction with this industry accountable and transparent out that "should not permit any person employed in industry of snuff to be a member of any governing body , committee or advisory group to establish or implement policies snuff control or public health. "
McDougall did not make public their connection to Imperial Tobacco, to date, IDRC has expressed no willingness to separate and we have not seen any transparency or accountability respect.
infiltration in the IDRC is particularly serious because the IDRC not only belongs to the government of Canada but has a specialized program, the RITC (Research for International Tobacco Control), whose mission is "to create a strong research base, funding and knowledge to develop effective policies and programs for the control of snuff, which will minimize the threat to health and human development which represent the production and consumption of snuff in developing countries " [1] .
The infiltration process, unfortunately, is not recent. Ms. McDougall became part of Board IDRC in January 2007 and was appointed as its President in December of that year, but an industry document included in the database Internal documents Tobacco Industry , Legacy [2] shows that the BAT someone had already infiltrated Board of Directors of the IDRC in 1996.
Imperial Tobacco Canada is Canada's leading tobacco company. By its own admission is a wholly owned subsidiary of British American Tobacco ( Social Imperial Tobacco Canada Report 2006-2007 ). Would have 67% of Canadian cigarette market, with sustained growth since 1975 when its market share was 36.7%.
These corporate practices have to be reported as a subterfuge to influence the highest levels of politics and the economy of a country, especially if about the tobacco industry and if we know that there is an irreconcilable gap between it and public health. In this case no longer just about social responsibility as a marketing strategy or to clear the good name of a company that bases its business in a lethal product. The presence of Ms. McDougall at IDRC involves using an instance of the government's development of a powerful and influential country to find reverse progress in controlling the global snuff.
This situation should also make us reflect on several aspects:
1. The monitoring from civil society organizations , do our part on governments to prevent interference or infiltration, keeping commitments of non-serious relationship with industry and other business interests and self-imposed high standards that we give authority to report unacceptable situations.
2. The strengthening of regional support networks to deal with cases like this that could be identified in each of the countries of Latin America, these networks could also act as mechanisms for technical and financial management to take charge of carrying out initiatives for control of snuff, without the intervention of other agents .
3. The need to develop strategic, organizational and individual, to monitor and counter the progress of industry in our region , generating early warnings to minimize the damage that a deliberate action to cause the tobacco companies.
The cause of snuff control is not easy or comfortable. There are few who have experienced pressure and threats by the industry to be consistent and move forward. But do not act now give a message of weakness that will be very difficult to recover by the large degree of freedom that we would leave the industry.
Organizations like the Framework Convention Alliance, Corporate Accountability International, ATCA and several other concentrated on the African continent and in Canada , have already reacted against infiltration situation BAT at IDRC, African leaders have questioned the open and boldly, specifying the content and scope of a coordinated regional response. Fortunately this movement has taken a first result because, due to the outrageous and unacceptable situation, Foundation Gates withdrew the funding that was submitted to IDRC for the control of snuff in Africa [3] (5.2 million), media U.S. press have been very effective for reporting this, and the prospect of pressure to the Canadian government begins to set hard.
However, we can not settle that Ms. McDougall Imperial Tobacco has stopped or eventually leave the IDRC. It should lay the groundwork for this can not happen again, to investigate whether the BAT benefited from inside information obtained through research conducted by the IDRC, request a wake up call for the Government of Canada in international forums that apply for engaging in a situation of interference for more than three years systematically violated Article 5.3 of the FCTC, to develop mechanisms for monitoring and / or elimination of corporate social responsibility activities in the industry and undercover agents or facade for corporate social responsibility snuff industry is, according WHO , an inherent contradiction since the industry's core functions are in conflict with the goals of public health with respect to control of snuff .
More than anything, it's time to avoid at all costs, serve special interests or disqualify processes giving opportunity for the industry to achieve one of its main stated purposes: to provoke a split in the movement for control of snuff.
5.3 Working Group Latin American Civil Society
| Vaca Bucheli Rocío; rocio.vacab @ gmail.com | Pozuelos Dora Oliva Marina; doramarina_21@hotmail.com |
| | |
| Yul Francisco Dorado Mazorra / Corporate Accountability International / yuldorado@stopcorporateabuse.org | |
Abril de 2010
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