CMNT_TITLE

Article 1(a) of the Convention. Prison sentences involving compulsory labour as punishment for expressing political views or views ideologically opposed to the established political, social or economic system. 1. First, the Committee wishes to recall that, in most cases, labour imposed on persons as a consequence of a conviction in a court of law will have no relevance to the application of this Convention. On the other hand, if a person is in any way forced to work, including in prison, because he or she has expressed particular political views or has views opposed to the established political, social or economic system, the situation is covered by the Convention. Therefore, prison sentences, when involving forced labour, are covered by the Convention, if they are used to enforce a ban on expressing political views or views opposed to the established political, social or economic system.

In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the Government had indicated, in its report on the application of the Forced Labour Convention, 1930, (No. 29), that, in general, prisoners in Djibouti do not work. It noted that sections 23 and 24 of Act No. 144/AN/80 of 16 September 1980, issuing the Prison Code, refer to work carried out by detainees without explicitly indicating whether prison labour is compulsory or not. Moreover, sections 3, 42 and 43 of the Prison Code seem to envisage a special, more favourable status for political detainees. Taking into account these elements, the Committee asks the Government, once again, to indicate whether prison labour is compulsory for prisoners and, if so, whether the status of political prisoners includes special, more favourable provisions in respect of prison labour.

2. In its previous comments, the Committee asked the Government to provide information on the application in practice of section 19 of Act No. 1/AN/92/2eL of 15 September 1992 on political parties. The Committee notes that the Government has failed to provide any information in this regard.

The Committee notes that the Act on political parties, together with Act No. 2/AN/92/2eL of 15 September 1992 on freedom of communication, and certain provisions of the Penal Code (Act No. 59/AN/94 of 5 January 1995) regulate the exercising of a number of rights protected by the Convention. The Committee notes that the violation of certain provisions of these Acts is punishable by imprisonment and that such prison sentences, as indicated above, might involve compulsory labour. In these circumstances, the Committee would like the Government to provide relevant information on the application in practice of the provisions mentioned below of these Acts, so as to clarify the scope of their application. The Government is requested, in particular, to indicate how frequently these provisions are invoked before the courts, the circumstances characterizing the offences and the nature of the penalties imposed, and, where appropriate, to provide a copy of relevant court decisions:

–         Section 19 of Act No. 1/AN/92/2eL of 15 September 1992 on political parties, by virtue of which, any person who, in violation of this Act, establishes, leads or administers a party in whatsoever form or under whatsoever denomination may be subject to a prison sentence of between six and 12 months and a fine, or either of these penalties. Under the same section, a prison sentence of between one and five years and a fine are envisaged for any person who leads, administers or is a member of a political party which is maintained or reconstituted during its suspension or following its dissolution.

–         Under sections 77, 78 and 79 of the Act on freedom of communication (No. 2/AN/92/2eL), the following are punishable offences: slander; contempt towards the President of the Republic (prison sentence of between three months and one year); publication, dissemination and reproduction, by whatever means, of false information (prison sentence of between one and three years).

–         Sections 182, 188, paragraph 1, 189 and 427 of the Penal Code envisage the penalty of imprisonment in a number of circumstances: the organization of a demonstration in a public place without advance notice or which has been prohibited, or the filing of an incomplete or inexact application so as to mislead as to the subject or the conditions of the planned demonstration (section 182); contempt towards the President of the Republic (section 188, paragraph 1); contempt towards a member of the Government, a deputy, a magistrate, a magistrate’s assistant or a juror, a public officer or a law enforcement agent, or a person responsible for performing public service duties (section 189); public slander committed against: (1) a member of the Government, a deputy, a magistrate, a magistrate’s assistant or a juror, a public servant, a law enforcement agent or a person responsible for performing public service duties; (2) the courts, the army, constitutional bodies or the public authorities (section 427).

Article 1(c). The Committee asks the Government, once again, to indicate whether the implementing texts envisaged in sections 104 and 109 of the Shipping Code (Act No. 212/AN/82 of 18 January 1982) have been adopted and, if so, to provide a copy thereof.