Principles of Corporate Social Responsibility in China Concerning Coercive Family Planning

Reggie Littlejohn, President of Women’s Rights Without Frontiers, drafted these Principles, which she sent to Tim Cook, President of Apple Computer, on August 30, 2012, together with blind activist Chen Guangcheng, human rights activist Andrew Duncan, China Aid President Bob Fu.

Principles for Corporate Social Responsibility in China

Concerning Coercive Family Planning

The Principles:

As a company that voluntarily endorses the Principles for Corporate Social Responsibility in China Concerning Coercive Family Planning (“Principles”), we pledge to apply these Principles in conducting our business in China. We will design and deploy a corporate code of conduct, including policies, procedures, training and internal reporting structures to ensure adherence to these Principles when conducting business in China. We believe the application of these Principles will achieve greater equality for women and avoid complicity with violence against our female employees, perpetrated in connection with our enterprise in China.
Accordingly, we will:
(1) Refuse to practice, collaborate with or tolerate any aspect of coercive family planning on our premises or in connection with our employees, whether on or off premises.

(2) Prohibit the presence of any Family Planning Personnel on the premises of our businesses; prohibit any access of Family Planning Police or other Family Planning Officials to the employees of our businesses; refuse to issue any report or allow the creation of any report concerning the fertility or reproductive status concerning any employee or group of employees of our businesses.

(3) Refuse to allow on our premises or elsewhere in connection with our employees:

  • Forced abortion
  • Forced sterilization
  • The tracking of the menstrual cycles
  • The insertion of IUDs
  • The administration of cervical checks
  • The monitoring of fertility
  • The issuance of threats or seizure in connection with population control
  • The use of physical violence
  • The use of economic, social or political pressure
  • The use of informants, whether paid or unpaid
  • The seizure or detention of illegally pregnant women or members of our families
  • The issuance of birth permits
  • The collection of family planning fines
  • The punishment of One Child Policy violators, their families or co-workers

(4) Refuse to report, or allow to be reported, women who are pregnant without birth permits or who have otherwise violated family planning laws in China.

(5) Communicate with the Government of the People’s Republic of China to urge that Government to end forced abortion, forced sterilization, forced contraception and any other form of coercive family planning in China.

(6) Report and otherwise collaborate in the prosecution or holding accountable of any Chinese national who attempts to practice coercive family planning against any employee of our company, whether this coercion takes place on or off premises.

We will be transparent in our implementation of these principles and provide information that demonstrates publicly our commitment to them.

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