DAVOS: RICH AND POWERFUL MUST UPHOLD THEIR RESPONSIBILITY TO SAFEGUARD HUMANITY

As many of the world’s wealthiest and most powerful people meet in Davos once again, they must acknowledge the gravity of the challenges facing humanity and the urgent need to change course. The themes for this year’s event raise some difficult questions that must be addressed

Ahead of the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, which begins on 20 January, Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard said:

“As many of the world’s wealthiest and most powerful people meet in Davos once again, they must acknowledge the gravity of the challenges facing humanity and the urgent need to change course. The themes for this year’s event raise some difficult questions that must be addressed.

“Are we truly entering an ‘Intelligent Age’, as the World Economic Forum posits? While artificial intelligence, robotics and biotech advances claim to revolutionize our existence, there is no guarantee that all of humanity will reap the benefits. Enough warning bells have already been sounded about emerging technologies from experts and the communities most impacted by their unchecked use and deployment.

“We must be supremely careful about how we navigate these uncharted waters, for there is nothing intelligent about letting tech companies run amok, without robust safeguards to protect us from the worst impulses of corporate power and the adverse consequences of unprecedented technological growth.

“There is nothing intelligent about letting technological leaps widen existing divisions, and inequalities and facilitate authoritarian practices, as we’re already seeing. There is nothing intelligent about allowing machines to make decisions to kill people and enabling the annihilation of international law.”

“For all the promise of the digital age, it has also brought us widespread anxiety, heightened polarization and oceans of disinformation. Without ironclad human rights protections built into the heart of the technological development process, the utopia some promise could all too easily descend into dystopia.

As many of the world’s wealthiest and most powerful people meet in Davos once again, they must acknowledge the gravity of the challenges facing humanity and the urgent need to change course.

Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General 

“Talk of safeguarding the planet will ring hollow until world leaders stop letting fossil fuel companies sacrifice our future through their relentless, all-consuming pursuit of profit. The corporate actors retreating from previous commitments to stop growing the fossil fuel industry will cause costly destruction and untold human rights violations. Protecting our planet must begin with commitments to vastly scale up climate finance and fund a rapid, full and just phaseout of fossil fuels, while helping affected communities adapt to the worst impacts of climate change and providing reparations for climate-caused losses and damages.

“Reimagining growth requires a genuine commitment to reforming the global financial system. If this is to be a worthwhile exercise, attendees must stop propping up the crumbling system that delivers unimaginable wealth to a tiny minority at the expense of the suffering of billions. Instead of perpetuating these problems, those gathered at Davos must use their considerable influence to fix them. They must recognize that the human and economic costs of maintaining the status quo are as incalculable as they are unjustifiable.

“If we are to achieve a better future, we must reconsider paradigms of growth and prosperity and expand our thinking beyond narrow metrics such as GDP. To effectively address structural and systemic inequalities, we must find new and innovative ways to measure and deliver shared and sustainable advances. Bold, decisive and human-rights-based action is the only way to secure a future in which both human dignity and our planet thrive.”

Agnès Callamard will be attending the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos throughout its duration from 20 to 24 January. She will be available for media interviews on a range of human rights issues, including: 

• Israel’s genocide against the Palestinians of Gaza
• Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the ongoing conflicts in Sudan and Myanmar
• The new Trump administration’s human rights obligations
• Countering the rise of authoritarian practices, the global assault on human rights defenders and restrictions on civic space
• The climate crisis and the need for fair taxation for climate funding and for rights realization
• Rethinking paradigms of human progress, including prosperity, growth and redistribution
• The importance of addressing corruption, tax evasion and aggressive tax avoidance by individuals and corporations to benefit human rights
• Artificial Intelligence, Big Tech, digital surveillance and the right to privacy 
• The need to rethink international law to strengthen the rules-based order and accountability, including for corporations and other non-state actors
• The need to evolve human rights norms and international institutions so they are fit for the modern age and the challenges to come

New York Times Debate at Davos

Agnès Callamard will also be taking part in the New York Time Debate at Davos.

Topic: “This House believes it is time for the U.S. to step aside”

Date: Wednesday 22 January 2025

Time: 18:00 to 19:30 local time

Venue: Hotel Morosani Schweizerhof – Damoro Restaurant, Promenade 50, 7270 Davos Platz, Switzerland

Information for journalists 

Agnès Callamard is an international human rights expert. A leading advocate for freedom of expression, a feminist, and an anti-racism activist, Dr Callamard has been at the forefront of international efforts to combat some of the greatest human rights challenges of our time. She was appointed Secretary General of Amnesty International in 2021.