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The Committee notes with interest the Government's report and the information supplied by the Government representative to the Conference in June 1991, as well as the Constitution of Yemen of May 1991 and Act No. 19 of 1991 issuing the general conditions of service of the public service, which guarantee the right to organize of all citizens, including public servants.

It recalls that its previous comments concerned the following points:

- the absence of appropriate provisions to guarantee the protection of workers against any act of anti-union discrimination by employers, both at the time of recruitment and during employment, in accordance with Article 1 of the Convention;

- the absence of provisions to guarantee the protection of workers' organizations against acts of interference by employers, in accordance with Article 2;

- the absence of appropriate measures to encourage and promote the full development and utilization of machinery for the voluntary negotiation of collective agreements, in accordance with Article 4;

- the compulsory registration of a collective agreement and the possibility of its cancellation in the event of it not conforming to the security and economic interests of the country, which jeopardizes the application of Article 4 of the Convention under which collective bargaining must be free and cannot be the object of legal restrictions (sections 68, 69 and 71 of the Labour Code).

The Committee notes the assurances given by the Government that freedom of association is a basic right of each citizen and that it has undertaken to guarantee the respect and satisfactory application of the Convention through the enactment of new labour legislation which will take account of the comments of the Committee in the draft texts of the new Labour Code and a Bill respecting trade unions.

1. Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. With a view to giving full effect to the Convention, the Committee, with reference to its previous comments, once again requests the Government to adopt by legislative means specific provisions to guarantee expressly the protection of workers against acts of anti-union discrimination and the protection of workers' organizations against acts of interference by employers or employers' organizations, accompanied by sufficiently effective and dissuasive sanctions, and to indicate in its next report the measures that have been taken in this respect.

2. Article 4. The Committee also recalls its opinion that, since the trade union movement is still at the stage of consolidation and the collective bargaining process has not yet been implemented, it is necessary to take measures to amend the legislation which is in force, and in particular sections 68, 69 and 71 of the Labour Code of 1970, which are contrary to Article 4, with a view to establishing the appropriate machinery for associating the social partners on a voluntary basis in the determination of the Government's economic and social policy.

The Committee reminds the Government that the Office is at its disposal for any assistance that it may need in the preparation of amendments to give effect to the Convention.

The Committee requests the Government to indicate any progress achieved in these fields in its next report.