Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1990, published 77th ILC session (1990)

Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105) - Dominican Republic (Ratification: 1958)

A. Employment in sugar-cane plantations

In comments made since 1984, the Committee has drawn attention to the need to take measures to ensure the observance of the Convention in sugar-cane plantations and to end the abuses committed against workers of Haitian origin, in accordance with the recommendations made in 1983 by the Commission of Inquiry set up to examine the observance of the Convention.

In October 1988, during a direct contacts mission to the Dominican Republic and Haiti undertaken at the request of the governments of the two countries, the Government of the Dominican Republic reaffirmed its will to take every measure to ensure that the situation of agricultural workers in general, and of those of foreign nationality in particular, responds increasingly to the Conventions it has ratified.

In the observation that it made in 1989, the Committee hoped that this undertaking by the Government would make possible real progress in the implementation of the necessary measures to resolve the problems noted. The problems linked to the fact that workers of Haitian origin are not granted a legal status were particularly brought to light by the round-ups of persons living in the Dominican Republic, made with the assistance of police officers and military personnel in order to remedy the shortage of labour for the cane harvest. The problems were aggravated by renewed immigration that was both illegal and managed by the State Sugar Board (CEA). The persistence of the problems noted emphasised the urgent need for the Government to adopt the measures recommended by the Commission of Inquiry in 1983 and recalled since then by this Committee. Three groups of measures appear of priority importance:

1. The regularisation of the status of Haitians who have lived and worked in the country for a given period of time and the issue of identity papers to persons born in the Dominican Republic (paragraph 527 of the report of the Commission of Inquiry). At the same time, economic promotion measures should make it possible to stabilise the labour force employed on plantations (paragraph 516).

2. The regularisation of the hiring procedure and residence in the country of workers entering the country to work on the sugar-cane harvest (paragraphs 521 and 522). In so far as the entry of new workers into the country is recognised as being necessary to the operation of the economy, measures should be taken by the Dominican Government, either within the framework of an inter-governmental agreement or outside it, so that the process operates in an orderly manner and the workers concerned enjoy the necessary safeguards concerning their free choice of employment and their terms and conditions of employment and so that the role played by the armed forces in this context may be ended. These measures should include the following:

(a) the determination of the number of workers whose engagement by the various employers would be authorised;

(b) the establishment of placement offices at appropriate locations where such workers seeking employment in the Dominican Republic could be hired for the sugar-cane harvest, and be given a medical examination and issued with the necessary documents (residence and employment permits);

(c) the provision of clear information to the workers concerned on their terms and conditions of employment, by means of individual contracts of employment or a written statement (which should also be available in Creole);

(d) the transportation of the workers engaged to their places of employment.

3. Protection by the competent authorities of the rights and freedoms of workers. In this connection, the Government should take the necessary measures to:

(a) prevent by all the means at its disposal the recurrence of round-ups of persons for work in plantations and enforce the application of appropriate sanctions to those responsible for such cases;

(b) ensure that labour legislation is applied to sugar-cane workers, in accordance with Basic Principle III of the Labour Code, under which labour legislation is of a territorial nature and applies to citizens of the Dominican Republic and aliens without distinction; the Committee refers to its comments regarding the labour inspection services under Convention No. 95;

(c) in addition, to set up in "bateyes" of the CEA and in private plantations, civil administration structures such as exist in other population centres. This presence of the public authorities should ensure in a more permanent manner than is possible in real terms through the labour inspectorate the protection of the rights of workers and their families in plantations, since they will no longer be dependent in all the areas of their lives exclusively on the employer's administrators, assisted by the rural police force.

The Committee hoped that the Government would supply detailed information on the measures that it had taken to this effect.

In a report received before the Conference in 1989, the Government indicated that the national authorities were examining possible measures to be adopted in the near future to regularise the recruitment, employment and labour of aliens residing in the country, and particularly to restrict as much as possible the illegal trafficking of Haitian workers and their subsequent exploitation in inadequate living and working conditions. The Government also indicated that it had not been possible to achieve full "Dominicanisation" of the harvesting operations in sugar plantations, despite the great efforts made to attract Dominican and resident Haitian agricultural workers and the measures taken to grant to the latter a legal and social status similar to that enjoyed by Dominicans. No further details have been provided regarding the measures stated to have been taken to grant to resident Haitian workers a legal status and even a status similar to that of Dominicans.

The Committee also notes the discussion held in the Conference Committee in 1989 concerning the application of Conventions Nos. 95 and 105 by the Dominican Republic. The Conference Committee, taking note of the direct contacts which took place in October 1988, expressed its extreme concern over the situation of Haitian workers in the Dominican Republic. It stressed that there had been no progress, either in terms of legislation or practice, on essential points raised over a number of years by the Commission of Inquiry, the Committee of Experts and the Conference Committee. The Dominican Republic had requested ILO assistance in order to ensure the application of the Conventions in both its legislation and in practice. In this regard, the Conference Committee considered that special efforts were called for so that the ILO could, as from the 1989-90 harvest, verify the situation and ascertain on the spot the improvements that had been promised but were still awaited. The Conference Committee insisted upon the need for the Government to take the necessary measures, whose implementation should be verified in practice. The Conference Committee also noted that the Government had requested ILO assistance in drawing up an agreement with Haiti concerning the migration of workers. The Conference Committee trusted that any agreement drawn up with ILO assistance would particularly heed the comments of the supervisory bodies. The Conference Committee also trusted that, whether or not such an agreement were concluded, the Government of the Dominican Republic would without delay take the measures necessary to give full effect to the comments made by the ILO supervisory bodies.

A mission of representatives of the Director-General of the ILO was due to visit the Dominican Republic and Haiti in August 1989 to give effect to the request for assistance, as noted by the Conference Committee. This mission, whose mandate was to include the implementation of the measures requested by the supervisory bodies, was cancelled after the Government of the Dominican Republic expressed its disagreement with the orientation of the mission. The Committee notes that since then, and during the whole of the 1989-90 harvest, the Government has failed to take the measures requested by the Conference Committee for the ILO to be able to verify the situation and ascertain on the spot the improvements that have been promised but are still awaited. As regards the measures that, according to the Government's report that was received before the Conference in 1989, were to have been taken in the near future to regularise the recruitment, employment and labour of foreigners resident in the country, the Government has supplied no report since the 1989 Conference on the provisions adopted.

The Committee expresses its extreme concern at the contradiction between the stated intentions of the Government and the absence of any information indicating that real progress has been achieved as regards the implementation of measures to ensure the observance of the Convention.

B. Matters not related to plantations

Article 1(c) of the Convention. The Committee referred in its previous comments to Act No. 3143 of 11 December 1951, as amended by Act No. 5225 of 1959, under which workers who have not completed their work on the agreed day or within the estabished time-limits, when they have been paid in advance for such work, are punishable by prison sentences involving compulsory labour.

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government in its report received before the Conference in 1989 to the effect that Act No. 3143 has fallen into abeyance and that the authorities have envisaged repealing it. The Committee hopes that the Government will soon be able to report that this Act has been repealed.

Article 1(d). With reference to sections 370, 373, 374, 378, paragraph 16, and 679, paragraph 3, of the Labour Code, under which sentences of imprisonment involving compulsory labour may be imposed for participation in strikes, to which the Committee has referred in previous comments, the Government indicated in its report received before the Conference in 1989 that the necessary steps had been taken to amend or repeal these sections. The Committee hopes that the provisions referred to will soon be amended or repealed so as to ensure the observance of the Convention on this point. [The Government is asked to report in detail for the period ending 30 June 1990.]