Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2001, published 90th ILC session (2002)

1. Forced labour and trafficking of children. In its previous direct request, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the measures taken in relation to the trafficking of children and their exploitation at work.

The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in its report to the effect that the report issued in October 1999 by the National Review Commission established to "implement a national policy to combat the trafficking of children" noted the existence of the trafficking of children who are nationals of Mali, particularly in the frontier zone between Mali and Côte d’Ivoire. The Government also refers to a 1998 study by UNICEF, carried out in Côte d’Ivoire, which reveals that between 10,000 and 15,000 children from Mali had arrived in Côte d’Ivoire as a result of "trans-boundary trafficking organized in Africa". According to this study, girls work in domestic service and boys in cotton plantations, mines, the construction sector and other manual work. Children working in plantations suffer poisoning by chemical products and, among other problems, diseases of the skin and malnutrition.

The Committee notes the synthesis report of the subregional project of the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC/ILO, 2001), on "Combating Trafficking in Children for Exploitation of their Labour in Central and West Africa". According to this report, "structured networks" organize the trafficking of children from Mali to destinations which include France.

The Committee also notes the information provided by Anti-Slavery International to the Working Group on Contemporary Forms of Slavery of the United Nations Human Rights Commission. The majority of children subject to trafficking are boys from Ségou, Sikasso and Mopti. Networks for the trafficking of children towards Côte d’Ivoire emerged in the 1990s as a result of the demand for cheap labour in cotton plantations. Most of the children are recruited through intermediaries and sold to the owners of plantations, while in other cases their parents or friends promise them work, or through family networks, as a result of which they work in plantations, mines, on construction sites or perform any type of manual work and end up as slaves. As the traffickers frequently come from the same region as the children whom they recruit, it is easier to hide this practice, since they may know the families and the region. If they are arrested by the frontier police, parents often defend the trafficking and say that permission has been given for the child to cross the border to work. Most of them believe the promises of the traffickers that the children will find well-paid work. According to a study undertaken in Mali, children earn between 5,000 and 10,000 CFA francs (5 to 10 pounds) a month but, in practice, they do not receive any money because their wage is paid to the intermediary, or their work is used to reimburse the cost of their transport and maintenance and they end up working for years without being paid. According to a study carried out in Côte d’Ivoire, employers pay intermediaries between 50,000 and 75,000 CFA francs. The intermediaries also earn money by selling the children to employers. These children, completely isolated from their family, communities and culture, are under the control of traffickers and the employer and are vulnerable to all forms of exploitation and abuse. Their working conditions are minimal, without any consideration for safety standards. The history of "I.D." is typical of the suffering of these children. Now aged 15, he returned to Mali after spending two years working, as a result of being trafficked, in a coffee and yam plantation in Bouafle in Côte d’Ivoire. "Our day started at 5 o’clock. We had to walk six kilometres barefooted to get to the fields over stony and muddy land, carrying heavy loads on our heads. When we reached the fields, we were soaked and exhausted. The foreman showed us the part of the plantation that had to be finished before the end of the day. We were terrified of what he would do to us if we did not manage to finish the work. This threat, and the fear of being denied food if we could not finish in time, forced us to work quickly. The work was hard and being bent over all day gave us pain in our backs. If were sick and could not work, we were afraid of being tortured to death. One day, I saw two of my companions tortured because they had tried to run away. They fell sick and died." The urgency of the problem was recognized by the governments concerned at a meeting organized by UNICEF and the ILO in Libreville in Gabon from 22 to 24 February 2000.

The Committee notes the final observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC/C/15/Add.113, paragraphs 32-33), which expresses its concern at the situation of children employed in domestic work and in agriculture, children working in agriculture and mines, the rise in the sale and trafficking of children and the increase in the phenomenon of child beggars.

The Committee notes that, according to the national report of December 2000 on the follow-up to the World Summit for Children, an emergency national action plan to combat the trafficking of children for the purposes of exploitation at work was implemented and a cooperation agreement between Mali and Côte d’Ivoire was signed on 1 September 2000, establishing procedures for the repatriation and integration of child victims of trafficking. Collaboration between the authorities of Mali and of Côte d’Ivoire occurs through various structures, such as the frontier police, Interpol and the territorial and security authorities. The Committee notes that over 300 children were repatriated from Côte d’Ivoire in 1999-2000.

Article 25 of the Convention.  Under the terms of Article 25 of the Convention, the illegal exaction of forced labour shall be punishable as a penal offence, and any Member ratifying the Convention is under the obligation to ensure that the penalties imposed by law are really adequate and are strictly enforced. The Committee notes that, according to the Government’s report, no action has been taken with a view to punishing the persons responsible for the trafficking of children for the purposes of exploitation through work.

The Committee is aware of information that a specific Act respecting the trade in persons has recently been adopted, as well as a new Penal Code. The Committee requests the Government to provide copies of these texts and to furnish information on the judicial action taken against those responsible for trafficking (employers and intermediaries) and the penalties imposed.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the situation of beggar children (the "garibus" pupils) and on any measure taken to combat this phenomenon.

The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the evaluation of the National Action Plan which was completed in 2000 and on the National Emergency Action Plan to combat the trafficking of children for the purposes of exploitation through work, covering the period 2000-2001, and to provide a copy of the new National Action Plan, 2001-2009.

The Committee notes that Mali has ratified the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182).

2. Article 2, paragraph 2(a). In its previous comments, the Committee referred to section L.6.2 of the Labour Code, which provides that the term "compulsory labour" does not include work required in the public interest by legislative provisions on the organization of defence, the creation of a national service or participation in development. The Committee also noted that, under Act No. 87-48 AN-RM respecting the requisitioning of persons and property (section 25), requisitioning may take place outside situations of mobilization or wartime. Section 1 of the Act provides that its objective is to determine the conditions governing the right of requisitioning in the cases envisaged by the Acts respecting the general organization of defence and states of emergency. The Committee had recalled that the exception provided for in Article 2, paragraph 2(a), of the Convention only covers work of a purely military character and that the use of compulsory labour for the purposes of development is also contrary to Article 1(a) of the Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957, (No. 105), which has also been ratified by Mali.

The Committee notes from the indications provided by the Government in its report that the provisions of section L.6.2 have never been applied.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to bring the national legislation into conformity with the forced labour Conventions, particularly by abolishing recourse to compulsory labour for purposes of development, and by specifying that requisitioning is reserved for emergency situations as defined in Article 2, paragraph 2(d), of the Convention. The Committee requests the Government to provide copies of the Acts respecting the general organization of defence, states of emergency and national service. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the application in practice of Act No. 87-48 AN-RM respecting the requisitioning of persons, services and goods.

3. Article 2, paragraph 2(c). Prison labour. The Committee notes section 1 of the Decree determining the conditions for the application and regulation of sentences to perform work of general interest. Under this provision, the convicted person is compelled to perform a number of hours of work without remuneration for the benefit of a public community, a public service or an association recognized to be of public interest. The Committee draws the Government’s attention to the fact that the Convention requires that the convicted person shall not be hired to or placed at the disposal of private individuals, companies or associations. The Committee requests the Government to limit to public communities and services the institutions which may benefit from work of general interest imposed upon convicted persons.

4. Article 2, paragraph 2(e). Minor communal services. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government on this issue.