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

Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105) - Burundi (Ratification: 1963)

Article 1(a) of the Convention. 1. The Committee refers to point 2 of its observation concerning the Convention and notes that the Constitution appears still to be suspended. The Committee recalls that the suspension of constitutional guarantees can influence the application of the Convention. Individual rights and freedoms, such as freedom of opinion and expression, freedom of assembly, freedom of association, protection against arbitrary arrest, the right to a fair trial, etc., are an important protection against forced or compulsory labour being used as sanctions for expressing political or ideological opinions or as a means of political coercion or education. Consequently, the Committee asks the Government to indicate which provisions of the Constitution, laws and regulations are currently in force concerning the exercise of these individual right and freedoms and to provide a copy of them.

2. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that by virtue of section 40 of Ministerial Order No. 100/325 to organise prison labour, several provisions of the Penal Code can lead to the imposition of forced or compulsory labour in circumstances which come within the scope of Article 1(a) of the Convention:

(a) under section 412 of the Penal Code any person may be sentenced to penal servitude for life who is convicted of a criminal attempt with the aim, inter alia, of changing the constitutional order; under section 430, this offence is deemed to have been committed as soon as a punishable attempt in this respect has been made;

(b) section 413, punishing conspiracy with the same intention, provides for sentences of from five to 15 years of penal servitude for the conspirators. Section 431 provides that conspiracy exists where the intention to act has been formed by two or more persons. An unaccepted proposal to conspire is punished by penal servitude of from one to five years.

The Committee asks the Government to provide copies of judicial decisions illustrating the scope of the notions "criminal attempt" and "conspiracy".

Article 1(d). 3. In its previous comments, the Committee referred to section 231 of the Labour Code which provides that restrictions enforceable by sentences of penal servitude (as laid down in sections 313 and 320 of the same Code) may be imposed on the right to strike in order to ensure the functioning of vital sectors of the economy. The Government indicated that orders had been issued under the above provisions in important sectors such as hospitals and other medical services (Ordinance No. 222/344 of 8 December 1960), production and water distribution enterprises (Ordinance No. 222/308 of 2 November 1960) where labour stoppages would seriously disrupt the economic and social development of the country. The Committee noted that the above Ordinances were adopted before the entry into force of the Labour Code and asked the Government to provide information on any other provisions issued under section 231 of the Labour Code and on any provision adopted to define the term "vital sectors of the economy".

The Committee notes the Government's indications that the content of section 231 will be defined in the revised Labour Code which is currently being examined by the National Labour Council and will be published shortly. The Committee hopes that the provisions adopted will be in conformity with the Convention and that the Government will provide a copy of the revised text as soon as it has been adopted.