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Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - Syrian Arab Republic (RATIFICATION: 1960)

The Committee notes that the Government’s report contains no reply to its previous comments. It hopes that the next report will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous comments.

Repetition

Articles 1(1) and 2(1) of the Convention. 1. Freedom of career members of the armed forces to leave their service. The Committee previously noted that according to section 160 of Legislative Decree on military service No. 18 of 2003, the resignation of a member of the armed forces is accepted only by virtue of an order of the Commander General of the army and the other armed forces; and that the administration may refuse the resignation. It also noted that section 161 of the Decree enumerates the conditions under which a resignation is accepted, among them, once the military serviceman has completed the duration of his first contract. The Committee requested the Government to provide information on the duration of the first contract, for which a military serviceman is engaged.

The Committee takes due note of the Government’s indication in its report that following the 2013 amendments to Legislative Decree on Military Service No. 18 of 2003, the duration of the first contract has been set to a period of five years.

2. Freedom of persons in the service of the State to leave their employment. Over a number of years, the Committee has been drawing the Government’s attention to section 364 of the Penal Code (as amended by Legislative Decree No. 46 of 23 July 1974), under which a term of imprisonment from three to five years may be imposed on persons in the service of the State for leaving or interrupting work before resignation has been formally accepted by the competent authority. The Government also stated in its earlier reports that the Committee’s comments had been taken into account in the course of elaboration of the amendment to the Penal Code, in order to ensure conformity with the Convention.

The Committee notes the Government’s statement that the amendments to the Penal Code are still ongoing and will be submitted as soon as they are adopted by Parliament. The Government also indicates that a civil servant is free to submit his/her resignation in accordance with the specific legal procedures of the employment contract, provided that such a resignation does not hinder the work of the administration. Moreover, as the administration provides the civil servant with living and educational costs when it sends him/her on mission or on a scholarly grant, it expects to be reimbursed through the civil servant’s experience and knowledge which he/she acquired upon his/her return.

Referring to its 2012 General Survey on the fundamental Conventions, the Committee once again draws the Government’s attention to the fact that the effect of statutory provisions preventing termination of employment of indefinite duration by means of notice of reasonable length is to turn a contractual relationship based on the will of the parties into service by compulsion of law, and is thus incompatible with the Convention (paragraph 290). The Committee therefore reiterates its hope that the necessary measures will be taken in order to amend section 364 of the Penal Code so as to bring the legislation into conformity with the Convention.

3. Legislation on vagrancy. For a number of years, the Committee has been referring to section 597 of the Penal Code, which provides for the punishment of any person who is reduced to seeking public assistance or charity as a result of idleness, drunkenness or gambling. The Committee pointed out that provisions concerning vagrancy and similar offences, if defined in an unduly extensive manner, are liable to become a means of compulsion to work. The Committee requested the Government to take the necessary measures, in the context of the revision of the Penal Code, with a view to clearly excluding from the legislation any possibility of compulsion to work.

The Committee notes an absence of information on this point in the Government’s report. The Committee once again trusts that the necessary measures will soon be taken, in the context of the revision of the Penal Code, with a view to clearly excluding from the legislation any possibility of indirect compulsion to work, for example, by limiting the scope of the provisions of section 597 to persons disturbing the public order, so as to bring legislation and practice into conformity with the Convention.