Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1998, published 87th ILC session (1999)

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - Colombia (Ratification: 1969)

1. The Committee takes note of the reports sent by the Government and of the promulgation in 1993 of a new Prison and Penitentiary Code (Act No. 65).

Article 1, paragraph 1, and Article 2, paragraphs 1 and 2(c), of the Convention. 2. In its comments over a number of years, the Committee has referred to sections 269 and 233 of Decree No. 1817 of 1964 (the Prison Code), which imposes compulsory labour not only on persons who have been convicted but on all detainees except those declared medically unfit. The Government had indicated that the obligation to work imposed on detainees is merely a written legal form which has no practical application, since despite inmates' requests, the Ministry of Justice and the Directorate of Prisons cannot respond satisfactorily due to lack of means and human resources. The Committee notes, however, that section 86 of the new Prison and Penitentiary Code provides that detainees may be allowed to work individually or in groups for performing public, agricultural or industrial work under the same conditions as convicts, with the permission of the director of the penal establishment in question.

3. The Committee recalls once again that an obligation to work may only be imposed on persons convicted in a court of law. Imposition of an obligation to work by the administrative authorities or other non-judicial bodies is therefore not compatible with the Convention; prisoners awaiting trial or detained without trial may work on a purely voluntary basis, if they wish to do so (see paragraphs 90 and 94 of the 1979 General Survey on the abolition of forced labour). As section 86 of the new Code in its current form leaves open the possibility of imposing compulsory labour on detainees, in contravention of the Convention, the Committee requests the Government to ensure that the necessary measures are taken to amend this section so as to bring it into line with the Convention by expressly establishing the purely voluntary basis of prison work done by detainees.

4. In other comments that it has been making for some years, the Committee has referred to section 182 of Decree No. 1817 of 1964, under which work in prison establishments may be arranged directly through the administration or through contractors who are provided with premises and the labour of detainees and convicted persons, and who in exchange supply the necessary equipment and materials for the work and pay wages in accordance with the terms and conditions laid down by the prison administration. The Committee notes that, under section 84 of the new Prison and Penitentiary Code, prisoners can work for private individuals and the conditions of employment, relating to the type of work, working time and remuneration, must be laid down in an employment contract. It also stipulates that compulsory work may be imposed on prisoners by order of the prison director, in accordance with the rules established by the National Penitentiary and Prison Institute (INPEC). The Committee also notes that section 87 empowers the director of any prison establishment to enter into agreements or contracts with private individuals or companies with the sole aim of providing work, education and recreation, and of maintaining the effective working of the establishment.

5. The Committee wishes to point out that work done by prisoners for the benefit of companies or private individuals cannot be compatible with the Convention unless the prisoners concerned have given their voluntary consent and provided that there are guarantees, such as normal wages, social security provision, etc. However, the Committee observes that there are currently no provisions in national legislation relating to the voluntary consent to work for private companies. Moreover, according to section 84 of the Code, work can be imposed on prisoners by order of the prison director, which is not compatible with voluntariness. The Committee therefore requests the Government to take the necessary measures to enshrine the principle that prisoners must give their voluntary consent to work for private individuals, and to inform it in its next report of any progress made in this regard.

6. The Committee also notes that section 86 provides that work done by prisoners shall be fairly remunerated. In order to allow it to assess the application of the Convention, the Committee requests the Government to indicate the type of remuneration paid to prisoners working for private companies and to provide copies of agreements that have been concluded between the private companies and prison establishments.