SeaBOS connects the world’s seafood companies with scientists to transform industry sustainability (Part 2)
INTERVIEW
Numerous human rights issues have been reported in the seafood supply chain, including slave labor and harsh working conditions. Companies involved in the fishing industry are under pressure to ensure transparency in their supply chains and conduct human rights due diligence to protect the rights of workers.
We spoke to Tulika Bansal, who has worked as a human rights and business expert for the past 17 years in collaboration with NHRIs, NGOs, the United Nations, the private sector and government research institutes, about how to approach human rights due diligence in the fishing industry.
Tulika Bansal
Human rights and business expert. She has conducted nearly 20 human rights impact assessments (HRIAs) and sector-specific impact assessments (SWIAs) in a variety of regions, countries and industries. She is a trainer and guest lecturer on a variety of topics including human rights and business, corporate human rights due diligence, human rights impact assessment, children’s rights and business, and human rights i in the seafood sector. In addition, she provides strategic advice to business and human rights organizations and facilitates workshops. She is currently based in India and conducts collaborative research in India and the Asia-Pacific region on business, human rights, and children’s rights. She completed her master’s degree in Public International Law from Leiden University in the Netherlands.
——Could you tell us about your career so far?
I majored in public international law at Leiden University in the Netherlands and graduated in 2008. While attending university, I undertook several internships, and my experiences there led me to develop an interest in business and human rights.
After graduating, I worked for several years as a campaigner and researcher conducting research and advocacy on the negative impacts of multinational corporations in the oil and gas and garment sectors on human rights. I joined the Danish Institute for Human Rights in 2011, where I had the opportunity to work with companies, governments, other human rights institutions, and development finance institutions, among others. Recently, I started working as a freelance professional in the field of business and human rights, based in India.
——What led you to become involved in activities related to business and human rights?
During visits to India and travels while growing up I saw children living on the streets and other serious human rights issues.
This experience made me want to work on the intersection between poverty and human rights. I decided to major in law at university to study international law and human rights topics.
I became more interested in business and human rights work after interning at the Indian NGO Cividep in 2006. Cividep is an NGO based in Bangalore, India, that focuses on workers’ rights and corporate accountability in India’s garment, electronics and leather industries, among others.
I had the opportunity to conduct research as an intern there, and over time I have been able to see the changes that have been made in gaining rights for workers at multinational companies. I also had the opportunity to work on an OECD complaint against a multinational clothing brand. This eye-opening experience in India led me to continue to work in the field of business and human rights.
——I believe you have worked on a variety of human rights issues, including business and human rights, children’s rights and business in Asia and Africa, and education for detained youth. What do you think is the most serious human rights issue in the world?
That’s a difficult question. Because all human rights issues are equally serious. However, I can give you two examples that I learned from and inspired me from my own personal experiences.
The first was my experience working with young people detained in a Madagascar prison in the year 2007-2008. Together with a student organization in Leiden, the Netherlands, – then called SIFE Leiden, to which I belonged, and a local partner in Madagascar, we conducted a project to provide training to young people to acquire life skills to improve their employability and reduce the chance to recidivism after being released from prison.
“Jailhouse Rock,” a project carried out with students from Leiden University in the Netherlands for inmates of a juvenile prison in Madagascar.
For example, we provided financial literacy education on how to handle and save money, as well as simple training on behavior and etiquette in public places. These are very simple life skills. However, for those in prison as minors, there are many things they do not know. Once you are in prison, you will not be able to learn the life skills that you would normally be able to learn at school and day to day life.
We provided training to these young people so that they can build a stronger future for themselves once they are released from prison, preventing them from reoffending. Through this activity, I learned that even small skills can be of great help to at-risk youth. This experience was really eye-opening and I learned a lot about managing a complex project involving youth at risk, authorities, NGOs and other stakeholders..
Another important aspect of my career has been the experience of working with workers and local communities who are affected by corporate activities. While working at the Danish Institute for Human Rights, the Danish national human rights institution, I had the opportunity to speak with many workers. In particular, I have heard directly from workers and affected communities about the challenges they face when conducting human rights impact assessments. After such assessments I have tried to elevate their voices to company management, at the UN level and to other decision-makers. . This experience of directly engaging with those affected has been important for me.
——What are the challenges in the fisheries and aquaculture sectors?
I have worked on various areas of the fisheries and aquaculture industries and encountered many human rights issues. For example, I worked on several human rights issues related to labor rights in the Chilean salmon industry, including gender and women’s rights, issues related to working hours such as shift and night work, and combining work with family life.
Other issues related to the health and safety of divers who maintain and clean the salmon pens. Because divers work under harsh conditions, a considerable number of accidents have occured, some of which have resulted in death.
Salmon farmer in Chili. (Photo: Adobe Stock)
The impact on indigenous peoples’ is also one of the issues found in my past work. Areas where the salmon industry operates often overlaps with areas where indigenous people live. The existence of salmon farms has a significant impact on their human rights, including their traditional customs and cultural practices.
There were also issues reported related to pollution affecting small-scale fishermen. Lastly, there have been cases of harassment of those people who oppose the salmon industry.
within the Honduras=n lobster industry there are also challenges. Indigenous divers have been injured or have died while diving to catch lobsters under harsh conditions. Divers tend to dive deeper than necessary because the more lobsters they catch, the more money they earn.
However, the regions where these Miskito divers live do not have access to adequate medical care. Divers were getting sick from diving so deep to catch lobsters. Furthermore, they could not receive treatment in a hyperbaric oxygen treatment room, which has left some of them paralyzed and, in the worst case scenario, even resulting in death. These are actual examples of human rights issues that I have observed in the fisheries industry.
——In the fishing industry, especially on tuna fishing boats, forced labor, where people are forced to work for long periods without pay, under conditions of physical and even psychological violence, is a problem. In Japan, major domestic seafood companies have started to implement human rights due diligence. Based on your experience are there any specific issues that need to be addressed?
Major Japanese seafood companies are both buyers and producers. Therefore, it is necessary to look at it from both sides. First of all, as a buyer, you should look at your suppliers and supply chain policies and include human rights issues in your supply chain policies. I think it is extremely important for Japanese seafood companies to understand their impact on human rights.
As part of human rights due diligence, companies must identify, assess and address their human rights impacts. However, if you do not understand the impact of your company’s activities, you will not be able to address these. Therefore, Japanese seafood companies should first identify and evaluate the impact of their corporate activities. A good way to do this is through human rights impact assessments and detailed on-the-ground investigations in the high-risk countries in which Japanese seafood companies do business.
Japanese seafood companies import seafood not only from Chile but also from other countries with poor labor rights and human rights conditions, such as Thailand and Fiji. Japanese seafood companies should work with independent organizations that can conduct human rights due diligence and understand human rights risks and impacts.
Interview and writing of original text in Japanese: Shinya Morimoto
Editing of original text in Japanese: Ryuichi Mine
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