Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - Uganda (Ratification: 1963)

Articles 1(1) and 2(1) of the Convention. 1. Prohibition to enrol persons below the age of 18 years for military service. The Committee previously noted the Government’s indication in its report that section 5(4) of the National Resistance Army (Conditions of Service) (Men) Regulations No. 7 of 1993 prohibits a person below the age of 18 years to be employed in the armed forces. The Committee notes that section 52(2) of the Uganda Defence Forces Act of 2005 provides that no person shall be enrolled into the Defence Forces unless he or she is at least 18 years of age and has attained such level of education as may be prescribed.

2. Legislation concerning community services. The Committee furthermore notes the Community Services Act 2000/5 provided by the Government which repeals the Community Services Decree of 1995 and regulates community service which may be ordered by the Court for minor offences for a period not exceeding six months.

3. Freedom of career military officers to leave their service. The Committee previously noted that according to section 28(1) of the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (Conditions of Service) (Officers) Regulations No. 6 of 1993, the Board may permit officers to resign their commission in writing at any stage during their service. The Committee previously noted the Government’s repeated indication in its reports that the officer applying for the resignation must give his/her reasons for it, and the Board will consider these reasons and, if it finds them fit, will grant a permission to resign. The Committee observed that, under section 28(1) of the above Regulations, the application to resign may be either accepted or refused.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that section 66(2) of the above Regulations provides that the Board shall notify an officer of its decision within 90 days after the receipt of his or her application for resignation and the approval of an application to resign shall not be unreasonably withheld. Recalling that the Convention requires that career members of the armed forces fully enjoy the right to leave their service in peacetime at their own request within a reasonable period, either at specified intervals, or with previous notice, the Committee requests that the necessary measures will at last be taken with a view to amending section 28(1) of the above Regulations, so as to ensure conformity with the Convention. Pending such measures, the Committee reiterates its request to the Government to provide information in its next report on the application of section 28(1) of the above Regulations in practice, indicating the criteria applied in accepting or rejecting a resignation (in particular as regards the meaning of unreasonably withholding an application for resignation as set out in section 66(2)), as well as the number of cases in which such resignations were refused and the grounds for refusal.