Tobacco Investment and Human Rights: A Challenge for Taiwan’s ICESCR Implementation in Its Foreign Investment Policy

Corporate businesses can enhance human rights protection. The formulation of investment treaties can also be supportive in implementing the ICESCR. However, the life-threatening nature of tobacco businesses will pose a significant impact upon the enjoyment of the right to health. From the perspective of policy coherence, granting market access to tobacco industry investment through bilateral investment treaties (BITs) presents a particular challenge for ICESCR compliance. The Taiwan government paid insufficient attention to its ICESCR obligations when it adopted an open permission policy for foreign tobacco industry investment in BITs. As argued in this chapter, the Taiwan government can achieve little to redress this problematic market access commitment. In the case of withdrawing market access commitments through treaty amendments, for instance, existing tobacco investors’ rights would still remain intact and continue to be protected. The Taiwan government has a duty to create a condition in which people can enjoy good health. Individuals’ right to health in the ICESCR can never be “fully” respected and be “adequately” protected in the context of tobacco business activities. Nor can the government live up to its ICESCR duties while it still encourages tobacco investments through BITs. To bridge the gaping hole between these two regimes, the ICESCR norms might accelerate the reform of Taiwan’s tobacco investment policy and its BIT formulation. However, the success of these reforms ultimately depends on the Taiwan government’s willingness to effectively implement the ICESCR for its people.