Let's Talk Human Rights

By Valerie Vaello-Ramos

This summer, I had the privilege to be a part of the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRRC) team as an intern having worked with this team during the Spring 2022 semester and extending for the summer.  I worked directly with the Latin America team, which was a fantastic experience. My skills of being fluent in English and Spanish allowed me to work with different people. 

The BHRRC works to advance human rights in business and eradicate abuses. They amplify the voices of the vulnerable and human rights advocates in civil society, media, companies and governments.  While I worked directly with the Latin America team, I participated in a weekly meeting with the global team which allowed me to understand the full scope of the organization’s mission. An important part of the team are the regional researchers, who are located all over the world. They go to local communities to understand the impacts of businesses on the ground and regularly talk with business professionals and government officials. Then they release briefings and analyses, synthesizing the work of hundreds of advocates worldwide and making recommendations for companies, governments, regions, and sectors.

During my internship, I acquired knowledge of human rights, specifically in the Latin American context. The institutional work on human rights in the region is divided between the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. The commission exists to guarantee and monitor human rights in the Americas. The Court is a judicial arm that decides on an individual petition against the state for human rights violation. 

In my role, I worked on issues like the right to water, and human rights litigation. In several Latin American countries, access to water is not equal for everyone. Many companies pollute the waters and limit access to safe drinking water for people. There is no doubt that the right to clean water is one of several human rights that is constantly violated in several countries. Through different investigations, we documented the violations and  created mapping tools on business litigation and human rights in Latin America. 

I also contributed to the creation of a lawsuit database, translation to update the Spanish part of the BHRRC website, the Latin American Strategic litigation network directory, and some article analysis. The lawsuit database aims to provide a tool for organizations and companies to easily look up for updates on cases through a link to access all the necessary information about the lawsuit. In addition, it provides the names of the companies involved in the lawsuit, the issues involved in the lawsuit, the response sectors, the affected countries, the status of the lawsuit and the type of litigation.Between these tasks, I also worked on a major project of  a publication that discusses human rights litigation related to companies in Latin America, considering experiences from practice.

My last task was preparing for the VII Regional Forum on Business and Human Rights which was held from July 13 - 15, 2022, in Bogotá, Colombia, in a hybrid way. This year’s theme was accountability for responsible business conduct. The forum explored opportunities, challenges and practices to improve accountability regarding business and human rights in the region engaging key stakeholders from different countries and sectors. Some of the participants of the forum were representatives of state institutions, businesses, trade unions, civil society organizations, indigenous peoples and local communities, law firms, investors, international and regional organizations, academia and media. 

My direct supervisor at BHRRC during the internship was one of the key speakers of the forum. It was gratifying to see how the forum reflected everything that we had been working on for months. It was also crucial for me to see how the impacted people participated in these forums and the ways they were concerned about human rights situations. These people belonged to different communities where their rights have been violated. I know now that the participation of these people is important because they are the ones directly affected. It was  gratifying to see how a space is provided for them to express themselves.

This fellowship has been a wonderful experience because I felt I was able to make a difference for vulnerable people and victims of abuse. The team I was a part of always worked hard to address suspected abuse quickly and directly with companies. The Latin America team always made me feel like one of them and allowed me to be in their weekly meetings. That way, I could be informed of all the latest updates. I was also able to experience how teamwork is essential, not only within the Latin American team or the BHRRC in general, but also among different centers of the human rights movement. Cooperative work is done with allies and partners around the world.

I will never forget this experience since I acquired a lot of knowledge in business and human rights and could connect these topics with immigration law, which is one of my areas of interest. I would recommend to everyone to seek out experiences with the BHRRC because it allows you to explore human rights issues in other countries and highlights how you can really work towards helping those faced with human rights abuses.

Valerie Vaello-Ramos is a law student from Puerto Rico. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice with a minor in Law and Society from the University of Puerto Rico. She is fluent in English and Spanish; her main interests are business law and immigration law.