Received: 1 December 2017 Revised: 7 January 2018 Accepted: 31 March 2018 DOI: 10.1002/app5.242 ORIGINAL ARTICLE “An example for corporate social responsibility”: British American Tobacco's response to criticism of its Myanmar subsidiary, 1999–2003 Ross MacKenzie Faculty of Human Sciences, Macquarie Abstract University, Sydney, New South Wales 2109, Australia In 2013, British American Tobacco (BAT) returned to Myanmar a decade after it had left the country under Correspondence Ross MacKenzie, Faculty of Human pressure from civil society, international organizations, Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, and the government of the United Kingdom. The New South Wales 2109, Australia. company's involvement in a joint venture with an invest- Email:
[email protected] ment branch of the country's military government Funding information between 1999 and 2003 resulted in intense scrutiny and National Cancer Institute, US National criticism based on the military's record of human rights Institutes of Health, Grant/Award Number: R01‐CA091021 abuses. BAT argued that corporations could not be held accountable for actions of governments in countries in which it operated, and that its presence in Myanmar con- tributed to economic and social development. It also maintained that its Myanmar subsidiary provided a model of responsible business conduct. The controversy that surrounded BAT's Myanmar subsidiary between 1999 and 2003 has increasing relevance to the current situation in Myanmar, and potential implications for foreign corporations operating in the country. KEYWORDS Myanmar, tobacco industry, corporate social responsibility, human rights, framework convention on tobacco control This paper considers British American Tobacco's 2013 return to Myanmar, a decade after it had left the country under pressure from civil society and the government of the United Kingdom.