Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2017, published 107th ILC session (2018)

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

Article 2(2)(a) of the Convention. Use of services exacted under compulsory military service laws. The Committee previously noted that pursuant to the Conscription Law of 2006, compulsory conscription was reintroduced in Cambodia, requiring all male citizens between 18 and 30 years of age to register for military service. The Government stated that, military service is performed voluntarily and that an official notice is issued whenever the military forces are needed. The Government also states that the military forces are used only for military purposes. While noting this information, the Committee requested the Government to supply a copy of the Conscription Law (2006), as well as the sub-decrees issued in 2006 and 2011 pursuant to this Law.

The Committee notes that the copy of the abovementioned legislation has not been received. The Committee therefore once again requests the Government to supply a copy of the Conscription Law (2006), as well as the sub-decrees issued in 2006 and 2011 pursuant to this Law.

Article 2(2)(c). 1. Prison labour. The Committee previously noted the adoption of the new Law on Prisons in 2011. Pursuant to section 68 of the Law, low-risk convicted prisoners who have been assessed as physically capable shall be assigned to work as part of the prison’s daily routine, or to perform any work in the public interest and for the benefit of the community, or assigned to participate in prison industry, prison handicraft and prison farming programmes. According to section 71, following the approval from the Minister of Interior, the General Director of Prisons is entitled to enter into a contract to generate employment for the prison industry, handicraft and farming programmes, and is entitled to enter into a contract to sell the products produced. The Government also indicated that, in order to provide skills training for convicts, the Ministry of Interior has established a department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, as well as a department of Vocational Training and Employment.

The Committee notes the Government’s reiterated statement that, since the adoption of the Law in 2011, section 71 has not been applied in practice, and no private companies have expressed interest in employing convicts so far. In this regard, the Committee once again recalls that work by prisoners for private enterprises can only be held compatible with the Convention where such work is not compulsory, but is carried out with the formal, informed and freely given consent of the person concerned. The Committee therefore requests the Government to continue to provide information on the application of section 71 of the Law on Prisons (2011) in practice in its future reports. The Committee also once again requests the Government to provide concrete information on the activities carried out by the departments of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and Vocational Training and Employment, indicating, in particular, the nature and types of the vocational, technical or other training provided.

2. Compulsory labour exacted in drug rehabilitation centres. The Committee previously noted the Circular on the Implementation of Education, Treatment and Rehabilitation Measures for Drug Addicts of 2006, which stipulates that local authorities must establish compulsory drug treatment centres. The Committee also noted the information from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime that there have been reports of persons in drug rehabilitation centres engaged in compulsory labour. The Government indicated that admission into rehabilitation centres may be requested by family members/guardians; may follow a decision of the competent authorities or local authorities to the centres for detoxing treatment services and rehabilitation; or may be requested voluntarily by the individual.

The Committee notes a copy of Sub Decree No. 162 (22 December 2010) on the establishment of the national centre for the treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicts attached to the Government’s report. The Committee also notes the Government’s reiterated statement that the persons concerned are not required to work. The Government indicates that detoxification treatment, general education and vocational training are provided in the rehabilitation centres. The Committee also notes that Cambodia participates in the UNODC project of community-based treatment for drug users since 2012. However, the Committee notes that, according to the report on “the Challenge of Synthetic Drugs in East and South-East Asia” of UNODC published in August 2017, from 2011 to 2015, there has been an almost five-fold increase in the number of treatment admissions, from 1,011 to 4,959 in 2015, and that the number of drug treatment centres (ten) remains unchanged. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide information on the measures undertaken to ensure that persons detained in drug rehabilitation centres who have not been convicted by a court of law are not subject to the obligation to perform work, as specified in Article 2(2)(c) of the Convention. It also requests the Government to provide information on the number of persons involuntarily admitted by the rehabilitation centres, in comparison with the number of those who benefit from the community-based treatment. The Committee once again asks the Government to provide, with its next report, copies of other relevant texts governing drug rehabilitation centres which were mentioned by the Government in its previous report, in particular Prakas No. 253 (25 January 2002) on the implementation of the sponsorship policy for drug victims in the rehabilitation centre of the Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation, and its appendix No. 8; and Prakas No. 863 (9 August 2001) on education and vocational training for prisoners.