Honey Badger Silver Inc press release
Information Release - Gabriel Adopts OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises
TSXV - TSX Venture Exchange · Silver · Gold · Zinc · Lead · Copper · Antimony · Tellurium · Arsenic · Bismuth · Iron · Gallium · Germanium · Canada
TSX Trading Symbol: GBU
CEO Terms Responsibility Guidelines Part of a "Race to the Top" Company Joins Romanian Government in Commitment to OECD Process
TORONTO, Canada, and BUCHAREST, Romania, Sept. 22 /CNW/ - Gabriel Resources Ltd. today expanded its commitment to corporate social responsibility by adopting the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises (the "Guidelines"). The OECD Guidelines, one of the world's foremost corporate responsibility instruments, contain voluntary principles and standards for responsible business conduct in such areas as human rights, disclosure of information, anti-corruption, taxation, labor relations and the environment, and aim to promote the positive contributions multinational enterprises can make to economic, environmental and social progress. The OECD Guidelines are the only multilaterally endorsed and comprehensive code of conduct that governments are committed to promoting. The 37 countries that now adhere to the Guidelines are the source of most of the world's foreign direct investment. Both Canada and Romania adhere to and actively promote the Guidelines. The Government of Romania formally adopted the OECD Declaration on International Investment and Multinational Enterprises in April 2005. "We often hear from critics of globalization that internationalization will lead to a 'race to the bottom', where companies look for the least restrictive rules and regulations," said Gabriel President and Chief Executive Officer Alan R. Hill. "But the fact is that globalization, when it encourages companies to play to the highest international standards, can be a race to the top." Gabriel's adoption of the Guidelines expands its existing commitment to corporate social responsibility, with a clear example of that commitment being the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) prepared for the development of the proposed new mine at Rosia Montana in western Romania. Gabriel's EIA is in compliance with all Romanian and European Union legislation, as well as international best practices, with respect to mining projects. As set forth in the OECD Guidelines, the Rosia Montana project does not seek any relief or exemption from legislative requirements regarding environmental matters. "Our Rosia Montana project complies with the most stringent standards applicable to a mining enterprise," continued Mr. Hill. "We have designed Rosia Montana to meet EU and international standards from Day One - and when Romanian standards are more stringent than the comparable EU or international standards, we'll be governed by the Romanian standards."
About the OECD Guidelines
The Guidelines are the means through which The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) seeks to integrate core values in the areas of human rights, labor standards, the environment and anti-corruption into its work on international investment so as to help the OECD advance its mission of enhancing the contribution of investment to growth and sustainable development.
Gabriel/Rosia Montana also signatory of the International Cyanide Management Code
As part of its commitment to adhere to the highest international standards and legislation, Gabriel/Rosia Montana has already become a signatory of the International Cyanide Management Code for the Manufacture, Transport and Use of Cyanide in the Production of Gold developed by the International Cyanide Management Institute (ICMI) in March 2006. The code - which is a voluntary industry program developed under the aegis of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the International Council on Metals and the Environment (ICME) and which currently comprises 20 international companies involved in the production or transportation of cyanide, as well as gold mining companies - was developed in 2000, as a response to several spills and incidents involving cyanide at gold mines, particularly at Baia Mare, Romania in January 2000.
About Gabriel
Gabriel is a Canadian based resource company committed to responsible mining and sustainable development in the communities in which it operates. Gabriel is currently engaged in the exploration and development of mineral properties in Romania and is presently engaged in the development of its 80% owned Rosia Montana gold project.
<< The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises
Enterprises should take fully into account established policies in the countries in which they operate, and consider the views of other stakeholders. In this regard, enterprises should:
1. Contribute to economic, social and environmental progress with a view to achieving sustainable development. 2. Respect the human rights of those affected by their activities consistent with the host government's international obligations and commitments. 3. Encourage local capacity building through close co-operation with the local community, including business interests, as well as developing the enterprise's activities in domestic and foreign markets, consistent with the need for sound commercial practice. 4. Encourage human capital formation, in particular by creating employment opportunities and facilitating training opportunities for employees. 5. Refrain from seeking or accepting exemptions not contemplated in the statutory or regulatory framework related to environmental, health, safety, labor, taxation, financial incentives, or other issues 6. Support and uphold good corporate governance principles and develop and apply good corporate governance practices. 7. Develop and apply effective self-regulatory practices and management systems that foster a relationship of confidence and mutual trust between enterprises and the societies in which they operate. 8. Promote employee awareness of, and compliance with, company policies through appropriate dissemination of these policies, including through training programmes. 9. Refrain from discriminatory or disciplinary action against employees who make bona fide reports to management or, as appropriate, to the competent public authorities, on practices that contravene the law, the Guidelines or the enterprise's policies. 10. Encourage, where practicable, business partners, including suppliers and sub-contractors, to apply principles of corporate conduct compatible with the Guidelines. 11. Abstain from any improper involvement in local political activities. >>