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Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - Guinea - Bissau (RATIFICATION: 1977)

1. Article 1(1) and Article 2(1) and (2)(c) of the Convention. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the prison system is organized on the basis of political orientations formulated by the Government. It also noted that the Ministry of Justice had submitted to the Council of Ministers a Bill on the penitentiary system, in which prison labour is dealt with in Chapter V, and requested the Government to provide a copy.

In its report in 2000, the Government indicated that it was not in a position to provide a copy of the above Bill as the files of the Ministry of Justice and Labour had been sacked following the armed conflict. The Government nevertheless sent a copy of the regulations with regard to rehabilitation centres. The Committee notes in this respect that, in its report on the application of the Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105), the Government indicated that these regulations were only draft regulations for the rehabilitation centre in Brà and had never been approved by the Council of Ministers.

The Committee notes that in its report received in 2002, the Government does not provide information on the laws and regulations in force governing the prison system and no longer refers to the Bill on the penitentiary system. In view of the above circumstances, the Committee hopes that the Government will be in a position to indicate in its next report, the progress achieved with a view to the adoption of texts regulating the penitentiary system, and particularly prison work. Please provide copies of any laws or Bills on this subject.

2. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in reply to its general observation of 2000.