Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2015, published 105th ILC session (2016)

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - Iraq (Ratification: 1962)

Articles 1(1), 2(1) and 25 of the Convention. Trafficking in persons. The Committee notes with interest the adoption of Anti-Trafficking Law No. 28 of 2012. It notes in particular that the Law contains a detailed definition of the constitutive elements of the crime of trafficking in persons, criminalizes trafficking in persons for sexual exploitation and forced labour, and establishes prison sentences of up to 15 years. Under section 2, a High Committee to Prevent Human Trafficking is also established to design plans and programmes to combat trafficking in persons. Finally, section 11 provides that victims of trafficking shall be provided with social, psychological and physical rehabilitation, as well as financial assistance and temporary shelter based on gender and age classification.

The Committee observes that, in its report of March 2015, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights indicated that numerous interviews conducted with Yezidi women and girls who fled captivity from the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) between November 2014 and January 2015 provided reliable information on killings, widespread and systematic enslavement, including the sale of women, rape, sexual slavery and inhumane and degrading treatment (A/HRC/28/18, paragraph 35).

The Committee further notes that in December 2015, the United Nations Human Rights Committee expressed concern about information that trafficking in persons and forced labour remain significant problems in Iraq. The Human Rights Committee recommended that the Government ensure that all cases of human trafficking and forced labour are thoroughly investigated; that perpetrators are brought to justice; and that victims receive full reparation and means of protection, including access to adequately resourced shelters. It should also adopt the measures necessary to guarantee that victims, in particular of trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation, are not punished for activities carried out as a result of having been subjected to trafficking (Advance unedited version, CCPR/C/IRQ/CO/5, paragraphs 31–32). While acknowledging the complexity of the situation prevailing on the ground and the presence of armed groups and armed conflict in the country, the Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures to prevent, suppress and combat trafficking in persons. In this regard, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the application in practice of Anti-Trafficking Law No. 28 of 2012, indicating the number of investigations and prosecutions carried out, and the specific penalties applied. Finally, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to protect victims of trafficking.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.