Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2019, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - Namibia (Ratification: 2000)
Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 - Namibia (Ratification: 2017)

Articles 1(1), 2(1) and 25 of the Convention. Trafficking in persons. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that section 15 of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act of 2004 criminalizes cross-border and internal trafficking in persons for both labour and sexual exploitation and establishes sanctions of imprisonment or a fine. It noted the Government’s indication that a Bill on Combating Trafficking in Persons had been drafted. The Committee therefore encouraged the Government to pursue its efforts with a view to the adoption of the draft Combating Trafficking in Persons Act, and hoped that the question of really adequate sanctions would be examined in this framework in order to ensure that trafficking in persons is punishable with penalties of imprisonment that constitute an effective deterrent, not allowing for the mere imposition of fines.

The Committee takes note of the Government’s information, in its report, indicating that the Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act No. 1 was passed in April 2018. It notes with interest that this Act prohibits trafficking in persons and related offences, such as facilitating trafficking in persons or using the services of victims of trafficking, and provides for the protection of and assistance to victims of trafficking. However, the Committee notes that pursuant to sections 3 to 9 of the Act, offenders are liable to a fine not exceeding 1 million Namibian dollars (NAD) (NAD2.5 million in the case of a second or subsequent conviction), to imprisonment for a period not exceeding 30 years (50 years in the case of a second or subsequent conviction), or to both. Referring to paragraph 319 of the General Survey of 2012 on the fundamental Conventions, the Committee recalls that, when the sanction for imposition of forced labour consists only of a fine or a very short prison sentence, it does not constitute an effective sanction in light of the seriousness of the violation and the fact that the sanctions need to be dissuasive.

The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that seven cases are before courts for offences related to trafficking in persons. The Government indicates that it undertook an educational campaign within the communities to sensitize them on how to identify trafficking in persons and on how to proceed in such cases. The Committee observes that, according to the Statistical Report on Trafficking in Persons in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Region 2014–16, finalized in December 2017, data from the Namibian Police Force (NAMPOL) indicate that between 2010 and 2017, 82 victims of trafficking in persons were identified in the country, 31 cases were registered with the NAMPOL and 35 traffickers were detected. The Report further indicates that, in 2016, eight cases were investigated, leading to two being prosecuted. The Report underlines the increased number of cases registered, investigated and prosecuted since 2010.

The Committee notes that the National Human Rights Action Plan 2015–19 includes, as part of broader objectives, interventions such as the review of the curriculum for police training to integrate how to deal with anti-human trafficking, and the allocation of the resources necessary for the implementation of the “Zero tolerance campaign against gender based violence, and human trafficking”. The Committee also notes that the Government, with support from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC), has trained law enforcement officers, social workers, customs officers and labour inspectors in the identification and protection of victims of trafficking as well as in the prosecution of traffickers. While noting the measures taken to combat trafficking in persons, including awareness-raising and training measures, the Committee encourages the Government to provide information on the application in practice of the provisions of the Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act No. 1, including the number of investigations and prosecutions, and to specify the type of penalties imposed. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the protection and assistance to victims of trafficking, and on the impact of the National Human Rights Action Plan 2015–19 in combating trafficking in persons, indicating the activities conducted and whether it has been renewed.

Article 2(2)(c). Sentences of community work. The Committee notes that, according to an article released by the Embassy of Finland in Windhoek, Namibia developed a pilot project in 2006–07, in order to reduce the number of prisoners, and to include Community Services Orders as a part of sentencing. It notes that Namibia’s Report of 2015 on the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights indicates that a Community Service Order is an order of the court instructing an offender who has committed a non-serious offence to serve his/her sentence in the community by performing unpaid work for the benefit of the public as an alternative to incarceration. The Namibian Correctional Service has to identify suitable institutions for placement of offenders on Community Services Orders. The Committee recalls that pursuant to Article 2(2)(c) of the Convention, labour exacted as community work as a consequence of a conviction in a court is not regarded as a form of forced labour only if the service is carried out under the supervision and control of a public authority and that the said person is not hired to or placed at the disposal of private individuals, companies or associations. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the nature of the institutions for which offenders may perform community service, to provide a list of the institutions authorized to take on offenders performing such sentences, and to give examples of the types of work that may be required under this penalty.