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The Committee notes that no report has been received from the Government. It must therefore repeat its previous observation on the following matters:

Article 1(a), (c) and (d) of the Convention. In its earlier comments the Committee referred to various provisions of the Penal Code, the Public Order Act, the Prohibited Publications Order, 1968, the Merchant Shipping Act, 1967, and the Trade Disputes Act (Cap. 234) under which imprisonment (involving an obligation to perform labour) may be imposed as a punishment for the display of emblems or the distribution of publications signifying association with a political object or political organization, for various breaches of discipline in the merchant marine and for participation in certain forms of strikes. The Committee has noted that the Government's latest report contains no new information on this subject. The Committee requests the Government to provide, in its next report, information on any new developments in this field, including the report of the Task Force on the Reform of Penal Laws and Procedures submitted to the Attorney-General in December 1997, and on other matters referred to in a request which is being addressed directly to the Government.

The Committee hopes that the Government will make every effort to take the necessary action in the very near future.