Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2010, published 100th ILC session (2011)

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - Kuwait (Ratification: 1968)

Articles 1(1) and 2(1) of the Convention. Freedom of career military personnel to leave their service. In its earlier comments, the Committee requested the Government to describe the criteria applied in accepting or rejecting a resignation submitted by a person wishing to resign from the army in accordance with the requirements laid down by Law No. 32 of 1967 (sections 104 and 105). The Committee observed that, under the above provisions, an application to resign may be either accepted or refused, but neither section 104 nor 105 establishes the criteria used for deciding whether a resignation presented in compliance with these provisions will or will not be accepted.

The Committee notes that, regarding the criteria applied in accepting or rejecting a resignation, the Government indicates in the first place the public interest of the State, followed by the interest of the person submitting the resignation, in the light of the political and international conditions, as well as the security considerations of the region. The Government also states that the period for the acceptance of the resignation is needed for the finalization of the procedures for leaving the service and handing over any military custody that the person was in charge of. As regards the number of cases in which such resignations were refused and the grounds for refusal, the Government indicates that there have been no cases in which a resignation was refused.

Recalling that career members of the armed forces, who have voluntarily engaged in the armed forces, should not be deprived of the right to leave the service in peacetime within a reasonable period (either at specified intervals, or with previous notice), the Committee requests the Government to continue to provide, in its future reports, information on the application of sections 104 and 105 in practice, indicating the number of cases in which such resignations were refused and the grounds for refusal.