Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1994, published 81st ILC session (1994)

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Sudan (Ratification: 1970)

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government in response to its previous observation.

1. It notes with interest the statement that, in the framework of the general revision of the labour legislation, the Ministry of Labour has included a provision giving express effect to the Convention in the draft of the new Manpower Act. This draft is currently before the tripartite commission responsible for discussing the labour legislation. The Committee requests the Government to inform it of progress in the adoption of this provision and to provide a copy of the amended Act once passed.

2. In its previous observation, the Committee had requested full information on the practical application of section 6(c)(6) of Constitutional Decree No. 2 of 30 June 1989, under which a state of emergency was declared throughout Sudan, political parties and trade unions were dissolved, and measures would be taken to terminate the service of any public employee and every contract with a public office. The Committee notes that the Government's report is silent on this point.

The Committee again draws the Government's attention to Article 4 of the Convention and the fact that measures intended to safeguard the security of the State must be sufficiently well-defined and delimited so as to ensure that they do not become discrimination based on any grounds proscribed in the Convention. It again refers to paragraph 136 of the Committee's 1988 General Survey on Equality in Employment and Occupation, according to which, "the application of measures to safeguard the security of the State must be examined in the light of the bearing which the activities concerned may have on the actual performance of the job, tasks or occupation of the person concerned". The Committee hopes to receive full information in the Government's next report on the practical impact of the above-mentioned Decree.

3. The Committee notes the information received in May 1993 on the Government's "Concessional Position on the Issue of State and the Religion during the Interim Period". According to this position paper, "freedom of belief and worship shall be guaranteed in full to all Sudanese" (section 2(i)) and "during the interim period the southern states shall not be subject to any punishments based on Shariah law and alternative punishments shall be provided instead" (section 5). The Committee would like to receive information on the legal status of this position paper. It also asks the Government to inform it of any progress towards a new Constitution which would, according to the position paper, be silent about state religion.

4. Regarding the measures taken to eliminate discrimination in employment, including the role of selection committees in the public service, the Committee notes the information supplied concerning the measures taken by the selection committees to promote the principle of non-discrimination particularly based on sex, colour or religion. Noting that, according to the Government, the statistical system does not allow a breakdown indicating public and private sector workers, the Committee nevertheless urges the Government to supply information showing the practical implementation of the principle of the Convention in the public service (annual reports, studies, etc.).

5. The Committee also notes the statistics showing that, although almost as many women as men graduated from university in 1991 and 1992, only 74 out of 1,394 workers employed in posts requiring qualified training were women. It requests the Government to provide any inquiries or studies which examine or explain the reasons for this difference in recruitment between educated women and educated men.

The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken to ensure that discrimination in employment and occupation does not occur on any of the grounds in the Convention, with particular emphasis on the grounds of discrimination other than those explicitly mentioned in the report, such as discrimination based on political opinion.

6. The Committee is addressing a direct request to the Government on certain other points.