Definitive Report - Report No 4, 1953

Case No 20 (Lebanon) - Complaint date: 25-JUL-50 - Closed

A. A. The complainants' allegations

• Analysis of the Complaints
  101. 101 The two complaints presented, being similar in substance, are analysed together. They contain the following allegations:
       • (a) On 1 November 1949 the Lebanese Government closed trade union premises and arrested many trade union leaders. On 12 January 1950, the Beirut Court of Summary Jurisdiction sentenced several of the latter-in particular Mr. El Ariss, President of the Trade Union Federation of Lebanese Workers and Employees and member of the Executive Committee of the World Federation of Trade Unions--to terms of imprisonment of from six to 18 months. The reason for these convictions was to be found, inter alia, in the trade union activities of the persons concerned. The Court based its verdict on an article of the Lebanese Penal Code which provides for the punishment of " any person in Lebanon who joins a political or social organisation of an international character without the authorisation of the Government ".
       • (b) The Government is attempting to paralyse the representative organisation of workers at a time when it intends to amend the law of trade unions and to reduce by one-half the separation allowance hitherto paid to wage earners.
  102. Analysis of the Reply
  102. 102 In its reply, the Lebanese Government makes the following arguments:
  103. 103 Mr. El Ariss was sentenced by the courts not for his trade union activities but by reason of subversive political activities. The Supreme Court of Appeal upheld the verdict of the Court and the Government cannot intervene in this domain without infringing upon the independence of the judicial power.
  104. 104 The Trade Union Federation of Workers and Employees, of which Mr. El Ariss is President, exists illegally since it has never been authorised and since the Law of 23 September 1946 requires workers' and employers' organisations to obtain previous authorisation.
  105. 105 Both workers' and employers' organisations in Lebanon enjoy the same rights as those which are granted them in democratic countries, and the Lebanese Government has taken all the measures necessary to the free development of their activities.

B. B. The Committee's conclusions

1. 106. The allegations presented by the complainants have a dual object. While they refer principally to certain specific measures, to wit, the arrest and conviction of several trade union leaders and particularly of Mr. El Ariss, they also have a general character in that they charge that the Government is attempting to paralyse trade union activity.
2. 107. The reason for the arrest and conviction of these trade union leaders is to be found, according to the complainants, in their trade union activities. In substantiation of this allegation, one of the complainants states that the court which rendered the verdict based it, inter alia, on an article of the Lebanese Penal Code providing for the punishment of " any person in Lebanon who joins a political or social organisation of an international character". In its reply, the Government, which refers only to the case of Mr. El Ariss, states that the latter was condemned not for his trade union activities but by reason of his having engaged in subversive political activities. The versions given by the complainants and by the Government of the reasons for the conviction of Mr. El Ariss would thus seem, at first glance, entirely contradictory. Had the complainant furnished evidence that the trade union leaders were tried and convicted for the sole reason that the organisation which they directed had affiliated itself with an international trade union organisation, the Committee would perhaps have considered that this aspect of the complaint merited further examination on the part of the Governing Body. It should be noted, however, that in alleging that the Court based its verdict, inter alia, on an article of the Penal Code, the complainant does not maintain that this article constituted the sole basis for the verdict, the expression " inter alia " giving it clearly to be understood that the Court founded its verdict on other considerations as well. The Government, however, categorically states that the reasons for which Mr. El Ariss was brought to trial are independent of his trade union activities. It further states that the Supreme Court of Appeal, the highest judicial instance in the country, upheld the verdict of the court of first instance. In these circumstances, the Committee considers that the complainant has not furnished sufficient evidence to justify further examination of this aspect of the matter.
3. 108. In reply to the general allegation that it is attempting to paralyse the activity of trade unions, the Government states that both workers' and employers' organisations enjoy the same rights as those granted to them in democratic countries, and that it has taken all the measures necessary to the free development of their activities. It adds, however, that by virtue of a Law of 23 September 1946 workers' and employers' organisations are subject to previous authorisation, and that an organisation which has not obtained this authorisation has no legal existence. The Trade Union Federation of Lebanese Workers and Employees, of which Mr. El Ariss is President, has not received the authorisation prescribed by law and has consequently never had legal status.
4. 109. The provisions of the Law of 23 September 1946 (Labour Code) to which the Government refers are contained in Articles 86, 87 and 88 of this law, which deal with the establishment of workers' and employers' organisations. These articles are drafted as follows
5. 86. No industrial association, whether of employers or of employees, shall be founded without the prior authorisation of the Minister of Economic Affairs.
6. 87. Application for such authorisation shall be submitted to the Ministry of Economic Affairs (Department of Social Affairs). The Ministry, after consultation with the Ministry of the Interior, shall issue an order granting or refusing the authorisation.
   • The association shall not be deemed to be legally constituted until the said order is published in the official gazette.
7. 88. Application for the above authorisation shall be made in triplicate and accompanied by three copies of the standing orders and the record of antecedents of the foundation members. The stamps shall be affixed to the first copy, which shall be returned to the applicants with the order approving the association ; the second copy shall be retained by the Ministry of the Interior and the third by the Department of Social Affairs.
   • Article 106 of this law, concerning the establishment of federations of workers' and employers' organisations, provides that:
   • Industrial associations may, for the purpose of organising the relations existing between them, combine to form federations of such associations, in conformity with the rules laid down for the foundation of industrial associations and subject to the authorisation of the Ministry of Economic Affairs.
8. 110. The Committee considers that, while it is a common practice for States to provide in their legislation such formalities as seem to them proper to ensure the normal functioning of these associations, a provision in virtue of which the right of association is subject to an authorisation given by a Government department in its sole discretion is incompatible with the principle of freedom of association. It is true that the mere fact that legislation contains provisions which in themselves are contrary to freedom of association does not necessarily mean that freedom of association does not exist in the country covered by this legislation, for it may be that in practice these provisions are not applied or that they are applied by the Government in power in a spirit of tolerance which mitigates their severity. The Committee wishes, however, to observe that the right of workers and employers to establish organisations of their choice without previous authorisation and to belong to such organisations is one of the foundations of freedom of association.

The Committee's recommendations

1. 111. Having in mind these considerations, the Committee recommends the Governing Body:
   • (a) to decide that the complainants have not furnished sufficient evidence to justify reference of their complaint to the Fact-Finding and Conciliation Commission ;
   • (b) to take note of the statement of the Government that it has taken measures intended to ensure the free development of trade union activities;
   • (c) to take note of the statement of the Government that under existing legislation no industrial association, whether of employers or of employees, may be founded without the prior authorisation of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, granted after consultation with the Ministry of the Interior ;
   • (d) to draw attention to the fact that the right of workers and employers to establish organisations of their own choosing without previous authorisation is one of the foundations of freedom of association ;
   • (e) to suggest that the Lebanese Government may wish to consider the desirability of amending this provision in the light of the provisions of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948, and the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949.