Observation (CEACR) - adoptée 2009, publiée 99ème session CIT (2010)

Discrimination based on political opinion – inherent requirements of the job. In its previous observations, the Committee drew the Government’s attention to section 50 of Act No. 188/1999 on civil servants, as amended and reissued in 2004, which provides that “to hold public office a person shall meet the following conditions: … (j) [shall] not have been carrying out an activity in the political police as defined by the law”. The Committee noted that this restriction regarding entry into the civil service may go beyond what would be a justifiable exclusion in respect of a particular job based on its inherent requirements as provided for under Article 1(2) of the Convention.

The Committee cannot but regret that for the second consecutive time, the Government has failed to reply to the Committee’s comments on this matter. It recalls that without the cooperation of governments, it is unable to fulfil the mandate entrusted to it. The Committee, therefore, requests the Government once again to supply information on what constitutes an “activity in the political police” under section 50(j) of Act No. 188/1999, as amended, including relevant laws and judicial decisions, and to provide detailed information on the rationale and practical application of this provision, including the number of persons that have been excluded from the civil service on this basis.

The Committee is raising other points in a request addressed directly to the Government.