Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1990, published 77th ILC session (1990)

Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105) - Benin (Ratification: 1961)

The Committee notes that no report has been received from the Government. It hopes that a report will be supplied for examination by the Committee at its next session and that it will contain full information on the following matters:

1. Prison labour. In its comments over a number of years, the Committee has referred to the situation, with respect to prison labour, of persons under administrative internment and those sentenced for political offences. The Committee requested the Government to state whether or not such persons were liable to prison labour and, if not, to give statutory effect to this practice in order to remove all ambiguity in the matter.

The Committee noted that the Government referred in its report for the period ending 15 October 1987 to the provisions of section 88 of Decree No. 73-293 of 15 September 1973 establishing the prison system, as amended by Decree No. 78-161 of 23 June 1978, which provides that persons sentenced to administrative internment and are detained exceptionally in one of the prison establishments and persons sentenced for political offences must be kept apart from common law prisoners. The Government also stated that such persons are not currently subjected to prison labour or the social rehabilitation measures provided for in Decree No. 73-293 mentioned above.

The Committee recalls the indications contained in paragraphs 102 to 109 of its 1979 General Survey on the Abolition of Forced Labour that all forms of compulsory labour including compulsory prison labour, are covered by the 1957 Convention if they are imposed in the five cases specified in the Convention. The Committee again requests the Government to indicate the measures adopted to ensure that, both in law and in practice, compulsory prison labour shall not be exacted from persons under administrative internment or persons sentenced for political offences. Meanwhile, the Committee requests the Government to supply information on the practical effect given to the provisions concerning administrative internment, in particular on the reasons for such internments, their duration, the cases in which such internments are extended and the number of persons concerned.

2. Article 1(a) of the Convention. The Committee noted that, according to the Government, Act No. 60-12 on the freedom of the press has not yet been repealed, but that the sentences of imprisonment provided for in this text do not obstruct freedom of expression in that they sanction only the infringement of one of the procedures required for the exercise of such freedom, or acts of vandalism, or libel. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the application of this Act and on the measures contemplated to ensure that no sentences of imprisonment involving compulsory labour shall be passed as punishment for acts or activities relating to the exercise of the right of expression.

3. Article 1(c). The Committee noted the draft amendments to the Merchant Shipping Code. It noted that the Government has taken account of the Committee's observations over a number of years concerning sections 213, 235 and 238 of the current Code and that the breaches of discipline covered by the above sections will be punishable only by fine. However, the Committee noted that the new section 183 has made several breaches of discipline punishable by sentences of imprisonment whereas they are punishable only by fine in the present Code. This is the case of the breaches covered by sections 217 and 219 of the Code for any captain who is not on board when his ship enters or leaves ports, harbours, roadsteads or rivers and for any captain who refuses or omits without legitimate reason: (1) to make the required notification in the event of an offence being committed on board; (2) to fulfil the obligations incumbent upon him as acting registrar; (3) to keep all statutory documents regularly, in particular the log-book (section 183 of the draft Code). Since such breaches are not liable to endanger the vessel or the life or health of persons on board, the Committee again requests the Government to re-examine the draft Code in the light of the explanations given in paragraphs 110 and 117 to 119 of its 1979 General Survey and to report on the progress of this draft.