Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2023, published 112nd ILC session (2024)

Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105) - Gambia (Ratification: 2000)

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Article 1(a) of the Convention. Penal sanctions involving compulsory labour as a punishment for holding or expressing political views or views ideologically opposed to the established political, social or economic system. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the application in practice of the following provisions of the Criminal Code, which provide for sanctions of imprisonment (involving an obligation to perform labour by virtue of section 29(1) of the Criminal Code) in circumstances covered by the Convention:

section 48(1) and (2): possession, importation, publishing, selling, distribution or reproduction of prohibited publications;
section 52(1) and (2), as amended by Act No. 3 of 2005: uttering any seditious words; printing, publishing, selling, distribution or reproduction of seditious publications; possession or importation of seditious publications; and
section 59(1): publishing or reproduction of false statements, rumours or reports which are likely to cause fear or alarm to the public or to disturb the public peace.

The Committee notes the Government’s reference, in its report, to two cases, dated December 2010 and January 2012, whereby the accused who was charged with the offence of sedition was sentenced to imprisonment, but subsequently pardoned by the President. The Government indicates that there are no known cases of sedition since December 2016.

The Committee further notes the Government’s information that legislative reforms based on the recommendations of the Truth Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) are underway. According to the Government White Paper on the Report of the TRRC of 25 May 2022, the recommendations for reforming the Criminal Code thereby safeguarding media freedom and freedom of expression and decriminalizing defamation have been accepted by the Government. With regard to sedition, the Government White paper indicates that seditious laws are a necessary part of a nation’s security provided that they are not misused or abused by governments to curtail media freedom or freedom of speech and expression. The Government indicates that the necessary measures will be taken to provide a clearer definition of what constitutes sedition.

The Committee welcomes the information on the reform of the Criminal Code which aims inter alia at decriminalizing defamation and providing a restrictive definition of seditious acts. The Committee also notes from the Criminal Offences Bill of 2020 transmitted by the Government, that sections 48 to 50 continue to make it an offence to import, publish, sell, possess or distribute any prohibited publication (which is contrary to the public interest) punishable with a fine or to imprisonment or to both.

The Committee expresses the hope that, during the process of the legislative reform, the Government will take the necessary measures to ensure that the provisions of the Criminal Code on defamation, false statements, seditious words and prohibited publications will be reviewed so as to ensure that no penalty of imprisonment entailing compulsory labour can be imposed on persons who, without having recourse to violence, express political opinions or views opposed to the established political, social or economic system. In the meantime, the Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on any conviction handed down under the above-mentioned provisions of the Criminal Code, indicating the penalties applied and the facts constituting the offence.

Article 1(c). Punishment for breaches of labour discipline in the public service. The Committee previously referred to section 113 of the Criminal Code under which public servants who wilfully neglect to perform their duty are guilty of a misdemeanour, in which case a punishment of imprisonment (which may involve an obligation to perform labour) for a term not exceeding two years may be applied, in accordance with section 34 of the Criminal Code. The Committee notes in this regard that the Government refers to a case under section 113 of the Criminal Code pertaining to breach of labour discipline by two police officers who were convicted by the High Court and sentenced to pay a fine of 15,000 Gambian dalasi. The Government further indicates that there is no known incident in which section 113 of the Criminal Code has been misused by the State. The Committee also notes that the provisions under section 113 are reproduced under section 106 of the Criminal Offences Bill, 2020. The Committee considers that the provisions of section 113 are worded in terms that are broad enough to raise concerns about their compatibility with the Convention. The Committee therefore requests the Government to take advantage of the process of revision of the Criminal Code, to ensure that both in law and practice no penalties of imprisonment involving compulsory labour can be imposed on civil servants for violations of labour discipline. In the meantime, it requests the Government to continue to provide information on the application in practice of section 113 of the Criminal Code.