Excerpted from Fast Company:
Sharon Hom, 56, has waged a four-year campaign targeting Olympic sponsors, holding closed-door conversations to persuade them to meet higher human-rights obligations.
For the Olympics and beyond, what's going to work is getting companies to understand that what's good for shareholders and what's good for human rights is actually the same: a sustainable population or consumer base. For instance, for high-tech companies doing business in China, their sphere of influence is access to information, so they should be promoting privacy issues. Security companies need to make sure that the necessary extra measures being introduced for the Games won't be used afterward to monitor the Chinese people, in particular the protest community.
The business community has a responsibility not to contribute, even implicitly, to human-rights violations. What they do now leading up to the Games will determine if there will be some real blowback for them afterward. Everyone is starting to do an audit of conscience.
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For more information on this issue:
- China Rights Forum No. 3 2007:
2008 and Beyond - Articles, HRIC issue briefs, resource list, take action and more focusing on the 2008 Beijing Olympics. - China Rights Forum, No.2 2007:
FAQ: Foreign Journalists Operating in China During the 2008 Beijing Olympics - China Rights Forum, No.1 2007:
Packaging China for the Olympics - HRIC Olympics Campaign:
Incorporating Responsiblity 2008 (IR2008) - China Rights Forum, No.4 2006:
IR2008 Update - Ready, Set ... Preparing for the Beijing Olympics - China Rights Forum, No.3 2006:
IR2008 Update: Maximizing the Impact of CSR in China - This HRIC backgrounder explores the tensions and tractions affecting the progress of corporate social responsibility in China. - China Rights Forum, No.3 2006:
Who's Who in the Beijing Olympics - An updated chart on who is in a position of influence in the 2008 Games. - China Rights Forum, No.2 2006:
Security in Beijing 2008 and Beyond - China Rights Forum, No.1 2003:
Olympics Sponsorship--a Win-Win Deal - China Rights Forum, No.1 2003:
The Olympics as a Force for Change
