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

Repetition

Article 1(a) of the Convention. Penal sanctions involving compulsory labour as a punishment for expressing political views or views ideologically opposed to the established political system. For a number of years, the Committee has been referring to the following legal provisions, which may lead to the imposition of penalties involving compulsory prison labour (by virtue of section 193 (1) of the Prison Act (Cap.19.08)) for activities that relate to the expression of political views or views ideologically opposed to the established system:

• section 4 (10) of the Public Meetings and Procession Act (Cap. 19.10), according to which a person who organizes or attempts to organize or incites a person to organize or take part in a public procession prohibited by the authority is liable to a fine or imprisonment for up to six months;
• section 3 (1), read together with section 6 (1) of the Public Order Act (Cap. 19.11), pursuant to which a person who in any public place or at any public meeting wears uniforms signifying his or her association with any political organization or with the promotion of any political object is liable to a fine or imprisonment for up to ten months, or both;
• section 22 (c), read in conjunction with section 23, of the Public Order Act (Cap.19.11), according to which a person who holds, organizes, speaks at, or takes part in any public meeting or public march contrary to the Act is liable to a fine or imprisonment for up to six months, or both.

In relation to the Committee’s request regarding the application in practice of such provisions, the Government indicates that it will seek to limit their scope to acts of violence or incitement to violence and that it will send information on their application in its next report.

The Committee takes due note of the Government’s intention to limit the scope of the above-mentioned provisions by restricting the application of sanctions involving compulsory labour to acts of violence or incitement to violence and requests the Government to inform on any progress made in this regard. In the meantime, and in order to assess that no sanctions involving compulsory labour are imposed on persons for the peaceful expression of political views or views opposed to the established system, the Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which section 4(10) of the Public Meetings and Procession Act (Cap. 19.10), and sections 3(1) and 22 (c) of the Public Order Act (Cap. 19.11), are applied in practice, including examples of court decisions handed down pursuant to these provisions and describing the facts that led to the convictions and imposition of prison sentences.