Observation (CEACR) - adoptée 2022, publiée 111ème session CIT (2023)

Convention (n° 29) sur le travail forcé, 1930 - Erythrée (Ratification: 2000)

Article 1(1) and 2(1) of the Convention. Compulsory national service. For a number of years, both the Committee and the Committee on the Application of Standards (in 2015 and 2018) have been urging the Government to review the Proclamation on National Service (No. 82 of 1995), which establishes a system of compulsory participation in national service for all citizens aged between 18 and 50 years, that goes beyond the exceptions authorized by the Convention. Compulsory national service includes active national service and service in the reserve army. Active national service, which concerns all citizens aged between 18 and 40 years, is divided into two periods: six months of active military service in the National Service Training Centre, and 12 months of active military service and development works in the military forces (section 8). According to section 5 of the Proclamation, in addition to military objectives, the national service includes “enhancing the economic development of the country”. The Committee also noted that, in practice, the conscription of all citizens for an indeterminate period had been institutionalized through their participation in different programmes. The Committee noted the Government’s indication that the national service was a necessary measure of self-defence in the context of the armed conflict with Ethiopia, but measures had been taken to start demobilizing conscripts. The Committee welcomed the peace agreement concluded between Ethiopia and Eritrea in 2018 and requested the Government to ensure that the work exacted from citizens within the framework of compulsory national service be limited to work of a purely military character, and that its duration responded only to the exigencies of the situation.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that a large-scale demobilization in the context of national service has taken place, especially for women and other segments of society, so that many conscripts have been demobilized and are now under the civil service with an adequate salary. Most national service conscripts are assigned to civilian functions in the civil service or other public sectors and, at present, there is no national service beyond the statutory 18 months. The Committee further notes the Government’s indication that even though a peace agreement was concluded with Ethiopia, the Tigray’s People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) poses a threat to the sovereignty of the country, against which Eritrea is obliged to defend its territorial integrity. Therefore, conscripts might be called upon to perform military activities in explicit circumstances at times of emergency.

The Committee further observes that in its report of 6 May 2022, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea points out in relation to the National Service Programme that: (i) while the 2018 peace agreement with Ethiopia brought hopes for reform of the national service programme, it has not led to demobilization, and no meaningful changes have ever been introduced; (ii) further to the involvement of Eritrean forces in the war in Ethiopia, the Government has justified indefinite conscription as necessary to defend the country against the TPLF; (iii) under the national service programme thousands of citizens are subjected to a government-sponsored system of forced labour, working for very little pay, and without having any choice in their profession or work location; and (iv) draft evaders and deserters are routinely punished with detention in highly punitive conditions, and often subjected to torture and inhuman or degrading treatment (A/HRC/50/20, paragraphs 23, 31 and 22).

The Committee notes with deep concern that the above-mentioned information points to the reinstituted mobilization of citizens for indefinite periods of time, and that no reform of the Proclamation on National Service (No. 82 of 1995) has taken place with a view to limiting the nature of tasks conscripts are required to undertake under the active national service. In this respect, the Committee wishes to emphasize that in order to be excluded from the definition of forced labour, the compulsory labour required under the active national service must be limited to work of a purely military character (compulsory military service) or to tasks aimed at addressing exceptional situations, such as war or a natural disaster. In both cases, the conditions and duration of the work should strictly respond to the exigencies of the situation. The Committee reiterates that the exceptions provided for in the Convention under Article 2(2)(a) and (d) do not allow governments to use national service obligations to compel citizens to participate in development works or programmes or to undertake civil functions in the public services. This is also in violation of Article 1(b)of the Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105), which prohibits the use of compulsory labour “as a method of mobilizing and using labour for purposes of economic development”.

The Committee recalls that in the context of the ILO Technical Advisory Mission that took place in Eritrea in July 2018, the Government indicated that the national service was critical to ensure the country’s development and its very existence but was open to cooperating with the ILO to ensure the effective application of the Convention, including by moving forward with the demobilization process.

While acknowledging the current security concerns of the country, the Committee once again urges the Government to reform the national service with a view to ensuring that: (i) the work exacted from conscripts is limited to military training, or work of a purely military character or to tasks aimed at addressing exceptional situations, such as war or a natural disaster; and (ii) in practice the duration and conditions of such work respond specifically to the exigencies of the situation. The Committee also requests the Government to ensure that the assignation of persons under the national service obligation to undertake civil service functions takes place on a voluntary basis. The Committee reminds the Government that it may avail itself of ILO technical assistance in this regard.

The Committee is addressing other issues in a request addressed directly to the Government.