A shareholder of Thomson Reuters, the parent of the Reuters news service, has asked it to launch an investigation into whether its products have contributed to human rights violations with regard to the company’s sale of personal data to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), reports Joseph Cox of 404 Media.
Cox reports, “The move is the latest piece of growing pressure against the company concerning its contracts with ICE and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). It follows an internal protest in which more than 200 Thomson Reuters employees sent leadership a letter expressing their concern with those contracts. As 404 Media reported on Tuesday, Thomson Reuters fired the worker who led that effort, according to a newly filed lawsuit.
“‘Shareholders request the Board commission an independent human rights impact assessment evaluating the extent to which TRI’s [Thomson Reuters] products may contribute to adverse human rights impacts when used by law enforcement agencies, including when TRI’s products are combined with other surveillance technologies,’ the shareholder proposal, written by the B.C. General Employees’ Union (BCGEU) and viewed by 404 Media, reads. BCGEU is a minority shareholder in Thomson Reuters.
“‘The assessment should address reasonably foreseeable risks arising from aggregated or integrated use of surveillance tools by law enforcement or immigration authorities and recommend measures to mitigate such risks,’ the proposal adds. It asks that any produced report ‘be publicly available, subject to confidentiality and competitive considerations.'”
Read more here.
