Agnes Callamard on Corporate Responsibility in Saudi Arabia

The brutal murder of Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi columnist, at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul last October shocked the world. Agnes Callamard, the UN Special Rapporteur for extra-judicial, summary, and arbitrary executions, investigated the murder and has published a chilling report concluding that there is credible evidence that high-level officials of Saudi Arabia were involved with the planning and execution of the murder and calling for further investigation and prosecution.

In her report she had specific recommendations for the business sector, in particular public relations and communication firms that help countries manage their reputations, and companies offering surveillance technology. These companies can do business with Saudi Arabia, but they must undertake due diligence to ensure that they do not expose themselves to the risk of being complicit in human rights abuses. In this podcast with IHRB's Salil Tripathi, Callamard speaks of the report, what's expected of companies, and what the international community needs to do to ensure greater accountability.

Callamard is director of the Columbia University Global Freedom of Expression Initiative (where Salil sits on its international panel of experts). She was earlier Executive Director of Article 19, a British human rights organisation that promotes free expression, and before that, at Amnesty International she was Chef de Cabinet of Secretary-General Pierre Sane.

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