Definitive Report - REPORT_NO294, June 1994

1. 117. The National Confederation of Workers of Guinea (CNTG) presented a complaint of violation of freedom of association against the Government of Guinea in a communication dated 9 March 1993. In the absence of a reply from the Government, the Committee had to defer the examination of this case three times and, at its March 1994 Session, issued an urgent appeal to the Government, observing that, in accordance with the procedural rules set out in paragraph 17 of its 127th Report, approved by the Governing Body, it would submit a report on the substance of the case at its next session, even if the observations and information awaited from the Government were not received by then. Since that time, the Government has not sent any observations on the substance of the case.
2. 118. Guinea has ratified both the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize Convention, 1948 (No. 87) and the Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98).

A. The complainant's allegations

1. 119. The National Confederation of Workers of Guinea (CNTG) alleges in its communication of 9 March 1993 that the Government of Guinea, through the Minister of Administrative Reform, Civil Service and Labour, has flagrantly violated trade union rights in the country by vigorously opposing the holding of a Special Congress of the CNTG.
2. 120. The CNTG explains that during a special meeting of the Confederation's Trade Union Council held at the Conakry Trade Unions Centre from 8 to 12 November 1992, it decided to hold a Special Congress as from 13 January 1993 in order to elect new members of its Executive Board and to correct certain basic problems in the way it works, adapting it to the new context of democracy in the country. The CNTG points out that the Congress was convened in accordance with the provisions of its constitution, which state that "the highest body of the CNTG is the Confederation's Congress, which meets every four years. A Special Congress may be convened in exceptional circumstances. In either case the Congress is convened by a decision of the Confederation's Executive Board, ratified by the Confederation's Trade Union Council, or upon the request of two-thirds of the members of the Confederation's Executive Board or the Confederation's Trade Union Council" (article 15) and that "the members of the Congress who may vote and who are eligible to hold office are the members of the outgoing Executive Board and the members of the boards of the 16 affiliated trade union federations" (article 16).
3. 121. The complainant organization alleges in particular that the Government openly opposed the holding on the above-mentioned date of this Special Congress, with the undeclared aim of bringing the most representative Guinean trade union confederation under the military's power, in order to install in office Mr. Mohamed Samba Kebe, the Secretary of the CNTG when the complaint was submitted. According to the complainant, Mr. Mohamed Samba Kebe is partisan in favour of the Government and is no longer worthy of the trust of the Guinean working class.
4. 122. The CNTG considers that the Government has interfered arbitrarily and in a partisan manner, to obstruct its national trade union confederation in its desire for independence and freedom, and that this interference is a violation of Article 3, paragraph 2, of Convention No. 87, which stipulates that the public authorities shall refrain from any interference which would restrict the right of workers' and employers' organizations to draw up their constitutions and rules, to elect their representatives in full freedom, to organize their administration and activities and to formulate their programmes, or which would impede the lawful exercise of this right. The Confederation also considers that this is a violation of Article 4 of ILO Convention No. 98 and of Article 5 of ILO Convention No. 154.
5. 123. The CNTG includes with its complaint a copy of the Resolutions and Recommendations of the Special National Trade Union Council, held from 5 to 11 November 1992 in Conakry, in which the reasons underlying the Confederation's decision to elect new members to its Executive Board are listed, as well as copies of two letters from the Minister of Administrative Reform, Civil Service and Labour, and of a letter from the Secretary-General of the same ministerial department, addressed to the General Secretary of the CNTG. It also sends a copy of a joint statement made by its 16 affiliated national trade union federations, dated 5 February 1993, in which they broke with the current Executive Board until the next Congress, and finally, a copy of Decree No. 01/098/PRG/SGG of 21 March 1991, which designated Dr. Mohamed Samba Kebe as the Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Urban Planning and Housing.

B. The Committee's conclusions

1. 124. The Committee observes that this complaint concerns interference by the Government in the right of the complainant organization freely to organize its trade union meetings and, in particular, a Special Congress. The Committee deeply regrets that the Government, despite the time which has elapsed since the presentation of the complaint, and although it was invited on several occasions to make comments and observations regarding the allegations of the complainant organization, including by an urgent appeal, has not replied on the substance of the case.
2. 125. In these circumstances, and in accordance with the applicable procedural rules (see para. 17 of the 127th Report of the Committee, approved by the Governing Body at its 184th Session), the Committee is obliged to submit a report on the substance of this case in the absence of the information it had hoped to receive from the Government.
3. 126. The Committee first of all reminds the Government that the purpose of the whole procedure established by the International Labour Organization for the examination of allegations of violations of freedom of association is to promote respect for freedom of association in law and in fact. If this procedure protects governments against unreasonable accusations, governments on their side must recognize the importance for the protection of their good name of formulating, for objective examination, detailed factual replies to the allegations put forward against them. (See the First Report of the Committee, para. 31.)
4. 127. As regards the substance of the case, the Committee recalls that it has always maintained that it is not competent to make recommendations on internal dissensions within a trade union organization, so long as the government does not intervene in a manner which might affect the exercise of trade union rights and the normal functioning of an organization. (See Digest of decisions and principles of the Freedom of Association Committee, 3rd edition, 1985, para. 666.)
5. 128. In this case, it appears from a letter dated 18 January 1993 sent by the Minister of Administrative Reform, Civil Service and Labour to the General Secretary of the CNTG that the Minister did indeed refuse the holding of a Special Congress by this Confederation, scheduled for 13 January 1993. He justifies his decision by stating that "the Government should have been informed at least eight days before the scheduled date, since the Congress concerns the great majority of the nation's workers", that he "was not informed of the measures taken to ensure that the work would take place in the necessary climate of calm", and that "it would have been desirable that the CNTG indicate to the Government, its social partner, the reasons behind the convening of a Special Congress". In the same letter, the Minister proposes that the CNTG should "hold elections for all its bodies from the grass-roots up, in order to remain in a legally acceptable position and to forestall criticism from any quarter". Furthermore, a letter of 19 January 1993 sent by the Secretary-General of this ministerial department to the Secretary of the CNTG invites the Confederation to engage in a dialogue with the Government in a meeting on 20 January 1993. The Committee cannot but conclude that the intervention of the Government constituted flagrant interference in the internal affairs of the CNTG.
6. 129. As indicated above, it is not for the Committee to examine the reasons behind the CNTG's decision to hold a Special Congress. The Committee recalls, however, that in the case of internal dissension within a trade union federation, in virtue of Article 3 of Convention No. 87, the only obligation of the government is to refrain from any interference which would restrict the right of the workers' and employers' organizations to draw up their constitutions and rules, to elect their representatives in full freedom, to organize their administration and activities and to formulate their programmes, and to refrain from any interference which would impede the lawful exercise of that right. (See Digest, op. cit., para. 668.) In particular, workers' and employers' organizations should have the right to hold their congresses without previous authorization and to draw up their agendas in full freedom. (See Digest, op. cit., para. 145.)
7. 130. The Committee further recalls that while trade unions should respect legal provisions which are intended to ensure the maintenance of public order, the public authorities should, for their part, refrain from any interference which would restrict the right of trade unions to organize the holding and proceedings of their meetings in full freedom. (See Digest, op. cit., para. 162.)
8. 131. In the Committee's opinion, at least one of the reasons referred to by the Government in rejecting the holding of a Special Congress of the CNTG (the fact that the Confederation did not inform the Government of its reasons for holding this Congress), as well as the Government's suggestion that the Confederation hold new elections for all of its bodies, go beyond the measures the authorities should normally be authorized to take to ensure that the law is respected, and therefore made the holding of the Congress subject to prior authorization, which is contrary to Article 3 of Convention No. 87. The Committee consequently requests the Government to take all necessary measures to ensure that in future the Government's and authorities' interventions in trade union meetings are limited to what is strictly necessary to ensure public order and that the CNTG may hold its congress in full freedom.
9. 132. As regards the allegations to the effect that the government prohibited the holding of the CNTG's Special Congress with the aim of imposing on the Confederation Mr. Mohamed Samba Kebe who, according to the complainant organization, is partisan in favour of the Government, the Committee is not in a position to judge whether these allegations are justified since Decree No. 01/098/PRG/SGG of 21 March 1991, which designated him Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Urban Planning and Housing as of the same date, does not in and of itself substantiate these allegations.
10. 133. More generally, the Committee draws the attention of the Government to the principle expressed by the International Labour Conference in the 1952 resolution concerning the independence of the trade union movement, to the effect that governments should not attempt to transform the trade union movement into an instrument for the pursuance of political aims, nor should they attempt to interfere with the normal functions of the trade union movement because of its freely established relationship with a political party. (See Digest, op. cit., para. 353.) The Committee requests the Government to ensure that this principle is respected in practice.