We urge the swift passage of the "Act on the Protection of Human Rights and Environment for Sustainable Corporate Management" (Bill No. 2210837), currently under review by the National Assembly's Strategy and Finance Committee.

After 12 years of voluntary efforts to implement the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) and three National Action Plans by the Korean Government, Korean companies are still failing to achieve minimum international standards for human rights protection. Hence, building on the European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) in 2028, Korea has a historic opportunity to provide leadership across Asia by passing the "Act on the Protection of Human Rights and Environment for Sustainable Corporate Management" (Bill No. 2210837), ensuring our companies are prepared for a future where addressing unsustainable inequality and environmental harm is unavoidable.

The urgency of this legislation is underscored by real cases of corporate misconduct. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and the Pulitzer Center exposed how Korean electronics giant LG transferred ethnic minority workers under China's state-imposed forced labor program, and despite UN allegations in March 2021, LG's Seoul headquarters approved these transfers, shipping over 90,000 consignments since 2019. 

Furthermore, With Bill No. 2210837 is currently stalled in the National Assembly's Strategy and Finance Committee subcommittee, and after passing the full committee meeting on September 8, 2025, it has been delayed for over two months with no movement. We urge lawmakers to conduct a swift subcommittee review, advance the bill to a plenary vote without further delay, and pass this legislation before the end of 2025. This injustice contradicts Korea's founding principles of freedom, equality, and liberty, raising a fundamental question: what is democracy if the nation we fought to protect deprives others of their freedom?