Interim Report - Report No 117, 1970

Case No 591 (Senegal) - Complaint date: 09-JUL-69 - Closed

1. 7. The complaint of the National Union of Senegalese Workers (UNTS) is contained in a telegram dated 9 July 1969, addressed directly to the ILO; it was followed up by three communications dated 21 August, 11 September and 3 October 1969 respectively. The complaint and the supplementary information sent in support of it were passed on to the Government, which furnished its observations thereon in two communications dated 17 October 1969 and 21 January 1970.
2. 8. Senegal has ratified the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), and the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98).

A. A. The complainants' allegations

1. 9. The complainants allege that the UNTS was expelled from all the labour exchanges and that these were made over to the National Confederation of Senegalese Workers (CNTS), " a trade union federation set up by the Government and its party during the state of emergency "; that the property of the UNTS was confiscated for the benefit of the CNTS; that the UNTS is forbidden to hold meetings; that pressure is being put on the press to prevent it from publishing UNTS advertisements or documents; that the national broadcasting system has been placed at the disposal of the CNTS and that it is forbidden to broadcast even paid press releases from the UNTS; that UNTS delegates are refused admission to committees on which they should sit; that exit visas are systematically refused to UNTS leaders who are invited to conferences or seminars abroad.
2. 10. The complainants consider that the various measures clearly illustrate the Government's determination to eliminate the UNTS from the trade union scene and to replace it by the CNTS, " a puppet organisation directed by the Government ".
3. 11. The complainants allege that the latest of the infringements of trade union rights was the " so-called Congress for the Dissolution of the UNTS ", convened by UNTS turncoats, who had had no connection with the latter " since 14 June 1969, the date of the founding of the CNTS with the full backing of the Government and the politicians ".
4. 12. In its observations the Government begins by stating that in Africa, Senegal is one of the countries where freedom of association and protection of the right to organise are the most firmly guaranteed. It states that it has never disregarded the provisions of Conventions Nos. 87 and 98, nor those of paragraph 7 of the resolution adopted by the First African Regional Conference of the ILO, held in Lagos in 1960. It points out that the obligations and recommendations contained in these instruments are largely embodied in Part 2 of the Senegalese Labour Code, which deals with trade unions.
5. 13. The Government nevertheless points out that " freedom of association cannot be taken as signifying licence " and that consequently " it is inadmissible that a tiny minority of the population should place the life of the nation in jeopardy with impunity ".
6. 14. The Government states that the disturbances instigated by the UNTS constituted sufficient grounds for dissolution under the terms of the legislation in force in Senegal but that, nevertheless, it had no wish to use these grounds as a lever against the organisation.
7. 15. Going to the heart of the matter, the Government states first of all that the UNTS complaint must be examined against the background of the social situation prevailing between 30 May 1968 and 23 June 1969; it emphasises in this connection that at the beginning and end of this period a state of emergency had been declared as a result of the social disturbances caused by the UNTS. The Government states that " a developing country cannot stand such disruptions in so short a period of time without suffering considerable harm, both domestically and in its foreign relations ".
8. 16. The Government goes on to point out that, following the first declaration of a state of emergency, it signed, with the employers' and workers' occupational organisations, an agreement " so far-reaching in its scope as to surpass any achievements claimed by the trade unions since their introduction in the country in 1936 ".
9. 17. " It was then reasonable "-states the Government-" to think that after reaping so rich a harvest the UNTS would be satisfied and that Senegal would go through a calm period during which the measures for implementing the tripartite agreement would be studied and enforced in an atmosphere of social peace. Unfortunately this was not the case."
10. 18. The Government states that the year between the two periods when states of emergency were declared was, on the contrary, the most socially disturbed that Senegal had known for ten years. The Government states that, in order to describe it " quite impartially ", it suffices to quote the terms of a circular issued by a trade union which-it states-cannot be accused of being a government tool since it is the National Confederation of Believing Senegalese Workers, which had accepted the principle of an association of all the central trade union bodies.
11. 19. The Government quotes the following passages from the circular referred to in the preceding paragraph:
    • Considering that after the failure of the general strike decided on in the confusion of 11 May 1969 by the National Bureau of the UNTS, the Senegalese working class witnessed the sorry spectacle of the split in the UNTS with the resignation of one of its general secretaries, followed by that of other leaders, and their decision to form a new central trade union body known as the National Confederation of Senegalese Workers (CNTS);
    • Considering that this constitutes the dramatic outcome of a serious crisis within the UNTS following the events of May and June 1968;
    • Considering that at the time of these events the UNTS, a tangible expression of trade union unity, had shown itself to be an efficient instrument in the defence of working class interests by successfully carrying out the general strike of 31 May and by its settlement of the educational and social disputes on terms acceptable to all, and that the finest example of this success is the tripartite agreement (Government-UNTS-employers) of 12 June 1968;
    • Considering that it was from this time on that certain leaders, aware of the strength that the UNTS now represented, grouped themselves into clans in an attempt to divert the UNTS from its true trade union mission of serving the interests of the working class to use it as an instrument of political struggle in the service of personal ambitions or of unofficial opposition movements;
    • Considering that this is why it was no longer possible for the National Bureau or the other bodies of the central trade union organisation either to pursue their efforts to bring about trade union unity (in accordance with the procedure established under the general resolution of 15 January 1967) or to fulfil their mission of representation and objective defence of the demands of the working class, or even to implement correctly the tripartite agreement of 12 June 1968;
    • Considering also that meetings of the National Bureau had become the scene of bitter wrangling between rival political clans, all of whom disregard the true interests of the workers.
12. 20. The Government then states that, during the six months up to June 1969, the UNTS launched or instigated no less than eight unlawful strike movements before declaring, also unlawfully, the general strike of 11 June 1969. No one could say at that time-the Government goes on-whether the activities of the UNTS would drag the country down into total anarchy. Nevertheless, states the Government, the conscience of the Senegalese people and, above all, of the majority of the workers finally enabled the worst to be avoided; in a few days, following the trade union split, the situation was back to normal and since then social peace has reigned in the country.
13. 21. In the Government's opinion it would be logical for the Committee on Freedom of Association to consider the activities of the UNTS during the period discussed above in the light of Article 8 of Convention No. 87, which stipulates that, in exercising their rights, workers shall respect the law of the land. The Government states that the complaint before the Committee on Freedom of Association " comes from an organisation which has deliberately trampled on the social legislation of Senegal for a year, the measures which it claims have been taken against it are a direct consequence of this organisation's activities; the effects cannot be dissociated from the causes ".
14. 22. Finally the Government states that despite the heavy responsibility of the UNTS during the period under consideration and despite the national crisis which this organisation nearly unleashed " by activities quite outside the law ", the UNTS still exists legally in Senegal. Lastly the Government states that the UNTS is now at court over a dispute with the CNTS.

B. B. The Committee's conclusions

1. 23. The information made available to the Committee, and particularly the information from the Government referred to in the preceding paragraph, reveals that the UNTS has been the scene of a split, which has resulted in the creation of the CNTS, the dispute between these two groups now being before the courts.
2. 24. The Committee wishes to recall that in all cases involving matters which were the subject of pending national judicial proceedings, provided that these proceedings were attended by proper guarantees of due process of law, the Committee, considering that the outcome of these proceedings might make available information that would help it in appreciating whether or not allegations were well-founded, had decided to postpone its examination of the case until it knew the outcome of the proceedings.

The Committee's recommendations

1. 25. On the basis of these precedents, the Committee, while recalling the importance which it has always attached to the principle of the independence of trade union organisations as set forth in the resolution adopted on the subject by the International Labour Conference at its 35th (1952) Session, recommends the Governing Body to request the Government to inform it of the outcome of the proceedings now before the courts and to communicate the texts of the judgments handed down, together with the grounds given and, in the meanwhile, to postpone its examination of the case.