Responsibilities of Companies Seeking to Enter Burma’s Mobile and Internet Sectors The liberalization of the telecommunications and Internet sectors in Burma means that foreign and Burmese companies will have the principal role of providing telecommunications hardware, software, services, and applications on which individuals will be able to exercise their rights to free expression and information. Telecommunications operators and online service providers will also collect and store users’ personal data, which authorities could then request and obtain. Given the serious human rights risks in Burma, companies should act responsibly to ensure that liberalization of these key sectors does not lead to human rights violations. Companies have a responsibility to respect human rights. This principle is reflected in the United Nations “Protect, Respect, and Remedy” Framework32 and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights,33 which are widely accepted by companies and governments. This principle is also incorporated into industry-specific human rights initiatives such as the Global Network Initiative, a global multi-stakeholder initiative that aims to ensure technology companies respect the rights to freedom of expression and privacy online.34 The corporate responsibility to respect contemplates that companies should undertake credible human rights due diligence and mitigate human rights risks so that their operations do not facilitate or exacerbate human rights problems. The US government has issued a set of Reporting Requirements on Responsible Investment in Burma that, once finalized, will oblige US companies who invest more than US$500,000 in Burma to disclose the following: 32 UN Human Rights Council, Report of the Special Representative on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, John Ruggie, Protect, Respect and Remedy: a Framework for Business and Human Rights, UN Doc. A/HRC/8/5, April 7 2008, http://www.reports-and-materials.org/Ruggie-report-7-Apr-2008.pdf (accessed April 10, 2013). 33 UN OHCHR, “Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights: Implementing the United Nations ‘Protect, Respect and Remedy’ Framework,” UN Doc. HR/PUB/11/04, 2011, http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Publications/GuidingPrinciplesBusinessHR_EN.pdf (accessed April 10, 2013). 34 Global Network Initiative, “Core Commitments,” undated, http://www.globalnetworkinitiative.org/corecommitments/index.php (accessed April 10, 2013). 15 HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH | MAY 2013