How is international law treated in the HRCA?
The HRCA takes its point of departure in international human rights law, but is based on the premise that the company should comply with whichever applicable standard is most stringent, whether it be national law, or the international standard cited by the tool. Each question in the HRCA SA refers to the specific sources of international law and relevant international guidelines cited for that particular question. Including, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, ILO Labour Codes, African Charter on Human and People’s Rights etc. Since the international legal texts cited by the tool apply specifically to states, the cited provisions have been modified accordingly in the tool to apply to companies. The tool also cites the guidelines of various human rights organizations, research institutions and other independent bodies, whenever those guidelines serve as useful human rights reference points for companies.
