Observation (CEACR) - adoptée 2007, publiée 97ème session CIT (2008)

Articles 1(1) and 2(1) of the Convention. Slavery and slave-like practices. The Committee notes the Government’s report and the comments provided by the General Confederation of Workers of Mauritania (CGTM).

For many years, both the Committee of Experts and the Committee on the Application of Standards of the International Labour Conference have been examining attentively the issue of slavery and the vestiges of slavery in Mauritania, and particularly the practices of forced labour which may be imposed in this context. In its last comments, the Committee noted that, at the request of the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards, the Government accepted the visit of a fact-finding mission in May 2006. The Committee observed with interest that the mission had noted a number of positive measures which illustrated the Government’s commitment to combat slavery and its vestiges, which was no longer considered to be a taboo subject. It also noted the Government’s indication that the recommendations contained in the mission’s report should be taken into account in the national strategy to combat the vestiges of slavery. On the basis of these recommendations and the information provided by the Government, the Committee requested the Government to take additional measures to reinforce its legislation, the effective application of the legislation and the national strategy to combat the vestiges of slavery.

(a) Applicable legislation. In its previous comments, the Committee emphasized the shortcomings in the legislation. It hoped that, as the fact-finding mission had recommended, the Government would take the necessary measures to adopt a text clearly penalizing slave-like practices and defining in precise terms their constituent elements so as to enable the judiciary to apply it easily. The Committee notes the adoption by the National Assembly on 9 August 2007 of the Act criminalizing and penalizing slave-like practices. In his explanation of the reasons for the Act, the Prime Minister indicated that the legislative provisions adopted up to then had not achieved their objective, as the texts adopted had not contained an “explicit classification of the phenomenon and its criminalization and penalization to an extent that takes into account its inhumanity”. The Committee notes with satisfaction that this Act defines, criminalizes and penalizes slave-like practices. Section 2 of the Act defines slavery as the exercise of one or all of the attributes of the right of ownership over one or more persons. The Act makes a distinction between the crime of slavery and offences of slavery. A crime of slavery, which is punishable with a sentence of imprisonment of between five and ten years and a fine of between 500,000 and 1 million ouguiyas, consists of reducing another person to slavery, or inciting said person to relinquish her or his freedom or dignity or that of a dependent person or a person under her or his guardianship to be reduced to slavery (section 4). Sections 5–13 define and penalize the various offences of slavery. The Committee notes in particular that these offences include “any person who appropriates the goods, products and earnings resulting from the labour of any person claimed to be a slave or who forcibly takes that person’s monies shall be punished by a sentence of imprisonment of from six months to two years and fine of from 50,000 to 200,000 ouguiyas”. Offences of slavery also include prejudicing the physical integrity of a person claimed to be a slave and denying a child claimed to be a slave access to education. The Committee further notes with interest that the Walis, Hakems, local chiefs and officers of the criminal investigation police who do not follow up denunciations of slave-like practices that come to their knowledge, shall be liable to a sentence of imprisonment and a fine (section 12). Finally, human rights associations are empowered to denounce violations of the Act and to assist victims, with the latter benefiting from free court proceedings (section 15).

(b) Effective application of the legislation. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the national jurisdictions had never previously examined allegations relating to practices of forced labour or slavery and that victims encountered difficulties in being heard and in asserting their rights, both at the level of the public authorities and the judicial authorities. It noted, on the one hand, the instructions issued by the Minister of the Interior to Walis, Hakems and local chiefs to enforce the law, deal with cases which come to their knowledge with the required rigour and bring cases that lie within their competence to justice; and, on the other hand, the instructions given by the Minister of Justice to the prosecution services to make on‑the‑spot investigations when an allegation relating to the vestiges of slavery is brought to their knowledge and to investigate it.

The Committee considers that the Act criminalizing and penalizing slave‑like practices, as it defines precisely the elements which constitute the crime and the offences of slavery, will be easier for the investigatory and judicial authorities to apply. The Committee considers that it is indispensable for this Act  to be the subject of broad publicity among these authorities, as well as the population in general. It is essential that both the victims and those responsible for these practices realize that the climate has changed. The Committee notes in this respect that the Government refers in its report to the “mobilization of all official and private media with a view to demystifying this problem and raising the awareness of populations as to the gravity of slave-like practices and the obstacle that it constitutes to national cohesion and the socio-economic development of the country”.

The Committee requests the Government to take steps to publicize the new provisions of the legislation so as to promote an understanding of the criminal nature and consequences of engaging in slavery and its vestiges. Such awareness is required to be disseminated to public authorities as well as the public in general. The Committee asks that the Government inform in its next report of the actions taken.

The Committee recalls that, under Article 25 of the Convention, States which ratify the Convention are under the obligation to ensure that the penalties imposed by the law for the exaction of forced labour are really adequate and are strictly enforced. The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that, on the one hand, victims receive appropriate protection in order to encourage them to approach the police and judicial authorities to assert their rights and, on the other, that investigations are conducted in a rapid, effective and impartial manner; the provisions of the Act addressing assistance to victims and those allowing the prosecution of authorities which do not follow up on denunciations of slave-like practices that are brought to their knowledge will undoubtedly contribute to the achievement of this objective. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on any court decision handed down under the Act criminalizing slavery and slave-like practices. Whilst the Government has taken an important first step in combating slavery by the adoption of legislation, the challenge is now to implement the legislation by ensuring that those responsible for the continuation of slavery are appropriately convicted and that dissuasive penalties are applied.

(c) National strategy to combat the vestiges of slavery. The Committee noted previously that the Council of Ministers adopted in July 2006 the principle of the formulation, in the context of a participatory approach, of a national strategy to combat the vestiges of slavery, and that an inter‑ministerial committee was established for this purpose in October 2006. It requested the Government to provide detailed information on the adoption and implementation of this strategy. In its last report, the Government does not specify whether the strategy has in practice been adopted. The Committee however notes the Government’s indication that it will endeavour to find the means and machinery to address the vestiges of slavery through a national plan determining objectives in accordance with the priorities defined and encompassing the state sectors concerned (education, justice, communication, agriculture, water, youth and sports). The plan will be evaluated regularly until such time as those suffering the vestiges of the phenomenon catch up with the general level of construction, equality and justice. The Government refers to the implementation of a voluntarist national policy involving all Mauritanians and rejecting exclusion by giving priority to the most underprivileged and vulnerable citizens, with a view to their integration into active life. The Government refers in this respect to the need to promote and support the emergence of income-generating activities for persons who are vulnerable and have been the victims of the vestiges of slavery, and to facilitate the access of the poorest and most vulnerable to vocational training so as to improve their employability. It also refers to the promotion in poor rural agglomerations of basic infrastructure construction (dams, schools, wells) so as to address their essential problems more effectively.

The Committee notes this information. It would be grateful if the Government would indicate whether a national strategy to combat the vestiges of slavery or a national plan of action have been adopted in practice and, if so, to provide a copy, and asks it to indicate the activities undertaken by the inter‑ministerial committee established for this purpose. The Committee also requests the Government to provide more detailed information on the tangible measures that have been adopted and that it intends to take in the context of the strategy or national plan that is adopted. In this respect, it is important for all the actors called upon to play a role in combating slavery and its vestiges, including the police and the forces of order, the judiciary, the labour inspectorate and civil society, including the National Human Rights Commission and the religious authorities, to be stakeholders in this strategy, and for the need to be taken into account to undertake awareness-raising activities at the national, regional and local levels targeting all of the stakeholders referred to above. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would indicate the manner in which programmes to combat poverty specifically target communities in which the phenomenon of slavery and its vestiges is known and persists with a view to preventing these vulnerable persons from once again becoming victims of these practices.

Finally, in the same way as the fact-finding mission, the Committee emphasized previously that it is important to have available reliable information as a basis for assessing the scope of the phenomenon of slavery and its characteristics. It hoped that the Government would be able to conduct a study to offer better guidance for the action that has to be taken by the public authorities and to target the populations and geographical areas concerned. The Committee notes that the UNDP and the European Commission have agreed to mobilize financing to undertake this study and have proposed terms of reference to the Government, in consultation with the Office, which is making its technical assistance available to the Government. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any development in this respect.