Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2014, published 104th ILC session (2015)

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

Article 1(a) of the Convention. Prison sentences involving the obligation to work as a punishment for expressing political views. In its previous comments, the Committee expressed the hope that the process of revising the legislation on the media would lead to the amendment of the provisions of the Penal Code and of Act No. 6132 of 1962 on the expression and dissemination of opinions, under which defamation, offence or slander are punishable by imprisonment. The provisions are as follows:

• -Penal Code: section 86 (public offence against the Head of State); sections 368 (public slander against the Head of State), 369 and 372 (defamation and slander against deputies, representatives of Congress, secretaries of State, magistrates of the Supreme Court or of courts of first instance); section 370 (defamation of persons exercising public authority);
• -Sections 26 and 34 of Act No. 6132: offence against the President of the Republic and slander against courts and tribunals, the armed forces, the police, the legislative chambers, municipal authorities and other state institutions, members of the Cabinet and members of the legislative chambers, public servants, or persons exercising public authority.

Noting that, pursuant to section 57 of Act No. 224-84 regulating the prison regime, individuals who are sentenced to imprisonment are required to perform compulsory prison labour, the Committee recalled previously that Article 1(a) of the Convention prohibits any form of forced or compulsory labour, including compulsory prison labour, as a punishment for expressing political views or views ideologically opposed to the established political, social or economic system.

The Committee notes that, in its report, the Government refers to legal consultations, but the documents that it indicated as being annexed were not attached to the report. The Committee notes that, according to information available on the Chamber of Deputies’ website, several draft laws have been tabled to amend Act No. 6132 on the expression and dissemination of opinions, and are being examined by the Media Commission. The Committee recalls, in this regard, that in 2005 the Supreme Court of Justice found in Ruling No. 91 that laws criminalizing the expression of criticisms of public officials infringe freedom of expression. The Committee expresses the firm hope that the necessary measures will be taken to ensure that this legislative process results in the amendment of the above provisions of Act No. 6132 on the expression and dissemination of opinions, and of the Penal Code, in order to bring them into line with the Convention and therefore guarantee that no prison sentence may be imposed on individuals who express political opinions or engage in peaceful opposition to the established system.

Article 1(b). Mobilization and use of labour for purposes of economic development. The Committee previously drew the Government’s attention to article 75(4) of the Constitution, which includes the provision of services for development among the fundamental duties of citizens aged between 16 and 21 years. The Committee recalls that Article 1(b) of the Convention prohibits the use of compulsory labour as a method of mobilizing and using labour for purposes of economic development. In the absence of a reply in this regard, the Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the nature of this fundamental duty set out in the Constitution and the manner in which it is implemented in practice, indicating the penalties incurred by persons who refuse to carry out work required within the framework of this duty. Please provide copies of any legislation adopted in this respect.