The site is free and updated hourly. Already it gets 1.5 million hits a month. It links to reports in English, Spanish and French. And it's easy to find: type "business human rights" into Google and it comes up first.

Speaking at the Davos launch event were:

Mary Robinson, Director, Ethical Globalization Initiative; former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and President of Ireland

Dan Henkle, Vice President, Global Compliance, Gap Inc. (member company, Business Leaders Initiative on Human Rights)

Kenneth Roth, Executive Director, Human Rights Watch

Björn Edlund, Senior Vice President, ABB (member company, Business Leaders Initiative on Human Rights)

Salil Tripathi, Researcher - Economics & Human Rights, Amnesty International

Dr. Ibrahim Abouleish, Founder & Chairman, SEKEM Group (Egypt) (Dr. Abouleish has been named Outstanding Social Entrepreneur)

Ulf Karlberg, Founding Chair, Amnesty International Sweden Business Group; former Executive Vice President, AstraZeneca; Co-Chair Business & Human Rights Resource Centre

Christopher Avery, Director, Business & Human Rights Resource Centre

Special features live from today on www.business-humanrights.org:

The website was engineered by Jamkit ( www.jamkit.com), specialists in web solutions for the non-profit sector. Speaking from London, Jamkit's Seb Bacon said: "We are delighted that our Webfactory software, and our focus on accessible design and usability, have helped the Resource Centre raise international awareness about important human rights issues." Technology journalists wishing to interview Jamkit should contact Seb Bacon or Miles Waller: seb@jamkit.com; miles@jamkit.com; +44 20 7549 0520.

Notes for editors:

First, what others have to say:

Rough Guide to Ethical Shopping 2004: "A truly amazing resource, this website...is an index of practically everything on the Web that relates to the effect of companies upon human rights (including environmental damage)...a fantastic free service."

Sir Geoffrey Chandler, Founding Chair, Amnesty International UK Business Group, former senior manager at Royal Dutch/Shell: "The Resource Centre...is indispensable for anyone involved in business and human rights, whatever their standpoint."

David Rice, BP Group Policy Advisor: "Your site is a terrific help. We'll circulate it to our internal network of staff dealing with human rights issues."

Lynne Muthoni Wanyeki, Executive Director, African Women's Development & Communications Network (FEMNET): "This website helps those interested in monitoring differences between what transnational companies have committed to and their actual practices."

Alya Z. Kayal, Senior Social Research Analyst, Calvert Group: "As the human rights research analyst for Calvert Group, a mutual fund company involved in socially responsible investing, I find the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre to be an essential tool."

Ian Spaulding, Director, Overseas Compliance, Sears: "As someone responsible for vendor compliance at Sears, I am very happy to have such a resource. I use it at least once each week."

Asma Khader, human rights lawyer & women's rights advocate, now Jordan's Minister of State: "Your efforts...are fundamental in order to achieve progress in the human rights field."

Key points about the Resource Centre

The Business & Human Rights Resource Centre is an independent, non-profit, international organisation, in partnership with Amnesty International sections and leading academic institutions.