Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1992, published 79th ILC session (1992)

The Committee notes the information contained in the Government's report and the promulgation of Acts Nos. 6/91 of 9 January 1991 establishing the rules to be observed during strikes; 7/91 of 23 January 1991 establishing the legal framework for the formation and activities of political parties; 8/91 of 18 July 1991 on the right of association; and 9/91 of 18 July 1991 on the freedom of assembly and opinion.

The Committee notes that the report contains no information on the following questions, which were raised in its previous direct request:

1. Article 1(a) and (b) of the Convention. In its previous direct request, the Committee referred to the Ministerial Directive of 15 June 1985 on the evacuation of towns, issued under the decisions of the Fourth Congress of the Frelimo Party, whose aim is to combat hunger, underdevelopment and various forms of marginality and criminality. The Directive provides for the "unproductive" population to be moved from the towns to rural areas; "sorting posts" are responsible for checking persons suspected of being unemployed, vagrance, prostitutes or of belonging to other marginal groups (circular on the structure of operation "production"). Persons arrested and identified as "unproductive or anti-social" are sent to re-education centres or assigned to sectors of production (guide for mobilisation brigades). Section 2 of the Directive provides for the use of "appropriate coercive means to oblige those who resist to observe the decisions of the Fourth Congress of the Frelimo Party".

The Committee recalled that, under Article 1(a) and (b), States which have ratified the Convention undertake not to make use of forced or compulsory labour either as a means of political coersion or education or as a method of mobilising and using labour for purposes of economic development. The Committee asked the Government to provide information on the measures taken or under consideration to ensure compliance with the Convention in this respect and to provide full information on the operation of the re-education and production centres, particularly on the categories and numbers of persons placed at the disposal of the Government in these centres, and on the nature and extent of the work which they are called upon to perform. The Committee notes that the Government's report contains no information on this point. It asks the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure the observance of the Convention and to provide information on progress made in this regard.

2. In earlier comments, the Committee referred to Act No. 2/79 of 1 March 1979 and noted that under the provisions of this Act prison sentences involving compulsory labour may be imposed by virtue of sections 58 and 59 of the Penal Code, in circumstances falling within the scope of the Convention. (Section 1 stipulates that all acts that endanger, harm or disrupt the organisation of the Frelimo Party, the State and its agencies, the political, economic and social stability of the nation and the programmes of the Frelimo Party are offences against the security of the State. Under sections 9 et seq prison sentences of up to 30 years may be imposed on persons who establish, direct, organise, support or participate in associations whose activities are declared to be offences against the security of the State. Under sections 35 et seq, the use of verbal or written propaganda against the Frelimo Party, the State or the objectives defined in the Constitution may be punished by prison sentences of from two to eight years. Tendentious interpretation of the directives and laws of the Frelimo Party and the State, and instigation to and participation in the disruption of the public order may also be punished by prison sentences.)

The Committee once more recalls that the Convention prohibits the use of any form of forced or compulsory labour as a means of political coercion or education or as a punishment for holding or expressing political views or views ideologically opposed to the established political, social or economic system.

The Committee also recalls that the protection provided for in the Convention is not restricted to activities that express or demonstrate differing opinions within the framework of established principles. Consequently, if certain activities aim to bring about fundamental changes in the institutions of the State, there is no reason for considering that they are not covered by the protection afforded by the Convention as long as they do not involve the use of or incitement to violent methods as a means to achieving the ends sought.

The Committee asks the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to ensure that the persons protected by the Convention cannot be subjected to sanctions involving, under the above-mentioned provisions of Act No. 2/79, the obligation to work. Furthermore, the Committee asks the Government to provide information on the practical application of the above provisions of Act No. 2/79, particularly regarding the sentences handed down, and to supply a copy of the relevant judgments.

3. Article 1(c). The Committee referred to Act No. 5/82 of 9 June 1982 respecting the defence of the economy, whose main purpose is to define and describe acts or omissions which conflict with the plan and are harmful to the economy. This Act prescribes penalties for behaviour that, directly or indirectly, jeopardises economic development, prevents the carrying out of the plan or interferes with the material or spiritual welfare of the people. The Committee noted that:

(a) under section 10 of the above-mentioned Act, a fine and imprisonment of up to 12 years may be imposed in the event of serious harm done to the national economy on all who do not observe the procedures, the orders or the instructions governing the preparation or carrying out of the national state plan, territorial plans or plans for production units, with the intention of preventing the implementation of the established plans and standards;

(b) under section 12, any person who is directly responsible for disorganising sectors of production or for the provision of services, or for the absence of management or auditing or for the disorganisation of accounts with harmful consequences shall be sentenced to a fine and to imprisonment of up to two years;

(c) under section 13, imprisonment of up to two years is to be imposed on any person when harmful consequences result from his failure to observe the standards or instructions that must be observed in the performance of his duties to ensure that raw materials, manufactured products and other goods do not become deteriorated, vitiated, contaminated, unusable or lost;

(d) under section 14, any person who does not respect the obligations placed on him by his position or by the rules and instructions for technological discipline, or for the care and maintenance of machinery and equipment, may be sentenced to imprisonment of up to eight years where the infringement has harmful consequences.

The Committee also noted that under the provisions of section 7, which defines negligence as including carelessness, lack of a sense of responsibility, lack of discipline and inexcusable ignorance, Act No. 5/82 also punishes unintentional acts resulting in an infringement of the standards of management and discipline. The above-mentioned provisions seem to be applicable in a general way to any breach of the obligations or economic or technical standards in question.

The Committee noted that copies of judicial decisions made under the above-mentioned sections of Act No. 5/82, to which the Government had referred, were not included with the report.

The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures regarding the provisions of Act No. 5/82 to ensure compliance with Article 1(c) of the Convention, which provides that any form of forced or compulsory labour must be suppressed and not made use of (including compulsory labour imposed by judicial sentence) as a means of labour discipline.

The Committee asks the Government to indicate any progress made in this respect.

4. The Committee takes note of sections 157 et seq of the Civil Code concerning the right of association.

5. The Committee again requests the Government to provide a copy of Decrees Nos. 58 and 59 of 1974 respecting prison labour and to indicate whether political prisoners are exempt from the obligation to work and, if so, to provide the texts which give statutory effect to this exemption.