Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2013, published 103rd ILC session (2014)

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - Dominican Republic (Ratification: 1956)

The Committee notes the observations made jointly by the Autonomous Confederation of Workers’ Unions (CASC), the National Confederation of Trade Union Unity (CNUS) and the National Confederation of Dominican Workers (CNTD) on the application of the Convention, which were received in October 2012, and the Government’s report.

Articles 1(1), 2(1) and 25 of the Convention. 1. Trafficking in persons. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the judicial procedures initiated under Act No. 137-03 of 7 August 2003 on the smuggling of migrants and trafficking in persons and on the penalties imposed, as well as any other measures adopted to combat trafficking in persons.

The Committee notes the National Action Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons and the Smuggling of Migrants, which covers the period 2009–14, adopted under the auspices of the Inter-institutional Commission to Combat Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling (CITIM), which is also responsible for its implementation. The action plan covers three main strategic areas: prevention, the prosecution and punishment of perpetrators, and the protection of victims. In each of these areas, the activities to be undertaken are identified, as well as the time schedules, indicators specifying the objectives to be achieved, the institutions responsible and the mechanisms to monitor and evaluate impact. The Government refers to a number of activities intended to strengthen the knowledge of public officials concerning trafficking in persons, as well as their capacity for prevention, investigation and the initiation of judicial procedures in their areas of competence. Several public awareness-raising activities have also been undertaken by various ministries, including: an Internet site containing information on trafficking in persons and offering a means for victims to denounce their situation through an on-line form or a telephone line; national campaigns, “Do not be deceived” and “Say no to trafficking”; the distribution of documentation, etc. The Government adds that five judicial cases were opened in 2011, of which four are still pending before the courts.

The Committee notes that the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, in its concluding observations of March 2013, notes in the difficulties in the enforcement of Act No. 137-03 of 2003 on the smuggling of migrants and trafficking in persons, as well as the lack of sufficient funds for the implementation of the National Action Plan against Trafficking in Persons and the Smuggling of Migrants. It also refers to the absence of investigations into cases of trafficking in persons and the lack of measures for the rehabilitation and protection of victims (CERD/C/DOM/CO/13–14).

The Committee notes all of the measures taken by the Government to combat trafficking in persons and encourages it to continue in this manner. It requests the Government to continue providing information on the implementation of the measures envisaged in the context of the strategic areas of the National Action Plan Against Trafficking in Persons and the Smuggling of Migrants, with an indication of whether the objectives set have been achieved and whether an evaluation has been undertaken of the impact of the measures adopted. Please also provide information on the action taken to strengthen coordination between the actors engaged in combating trafficking in persons and the means and capacities available to the authorities responsible for enforcing Act No. 137-03 of 2003 on the smuggling of migrants and trafficking in persons, in view of the low number of convictions of those responsible for trafficking in persons. Finally, the Committee requests the Government to continue taking measures to ensure that the victims of trafficking benefit from psychological, medical and legal support which enables them to assert their rights and contribute to their social rehabilitation, especially for victims returning to the national territory.

2. Vulnerability of Haitian migrant workers to the imposition of forced labour. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to reply to the allegations made by several trade union organizations concerning the situation of Haitian workers who continued to enter and live in the Dominican Republic without documents, which reinforced their situation of vulnerability and their inability to assert their rights. The trade union organizations emphasized that many Haitian workers who were interviewed entered Dominican territory voluntarily and were then trapped in situations of forced labour in the services, construction and agricultural sectors, often through the methods used by certain employers to keep them in the debt spiral.

In its report, the Government contests the document which served as a basis for the allegations by the unions and indicates that it is not possible to ascertain the truth of the allegations. It refers to certain measures taken in the agricultural sector, including the publication in 2012 of an inspection protocol for the agricultural sector, which provides for the prohibition of forced labour as being one of the points to be verified by inspectors. The protocol contains the relevant legal texts, as well as verification methods that can be used to detect forced labour. The Government adds that inspections were undertaken regularly between 2007 and 2012 by the labour inspectorate in sugar-cane plantations and that no cases of forced labour were detected.

In their latest observations, the trade union confederations refer once again to the situation of Haitian workers who continue to come and work in the Dominican Republic without documents, which increases their situation of vulnerability. As a result, these workers are not covered by reports, statistics or official data. The trade unions also consider that the labour inspections carried out in the sugar-cane harvest sector are inadequate. They add that, as forced labour is not an offence in labour law, situations of forced labour do not appear in the record of offences of the Ministry of Labour as violations of labour law.

The Committee notes that the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, in the concluding observations referred to above, expresses concern at the labour exploitation of migrant workers who, as they are undocumented, work under oral contracts or in the informal sector, have limited access to social benefits and do not assert their rights due to the fear of being deported or expelled. In this respect, the Committee recalls that, in the context of the application of the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), it noted the measures taken by the Government to combat discrimination against migrant workers, including the adoption in 2011 of Regulation No. 631-11 under the General Migration Act, section 32 of which establishes that the same fundamental rights applying to nationals are guaranteed under the same conditions to resident foreigners and that the Ministry of Labour must ensure that the equality guaranteed in the Constitution is applied to the conditions of work of immigrants and that labour law is enforced (section 35).

The Committee recalls that the situation of vulnerability which generally affects migrant workers is aggravated when they are undocumented. As a result, through fear of reprisals or expulsion, migrant workers are not always in a position to assert their rights. The Committee recognizes in this respect that bad working conditions do not always constitute a situation of forced labour. However, in cases in which work is imposed by exploiting the vulnerability of the worker, under the menace of any penalty (such as dismissal, wage deductions or the threat of denunciation to the authorities), such exploitation cannot only be classified as bad working conditions and may meet the definition of forced labour set out in Article 2(1) of the Convention. Under these conditions, the Committee requests the Government to continue taking measures to strengthen the protection of Haitian workers so as to guarantee that they do not find themselves in situations constituting forced labour, that is situations in which they are obliged to perform work with being able to give their valid consent (the absence of free and informed consent, external elements which vitiate the consent initially given or the menace of a penalty).