Interim Report - Report No 60, 1962

Case No 179 (Japan) - Complaint date: 30-APR-58 - Closed

1. 102. When the Committee continued its examination of this case at its 29th Session (November 1961) it submitted a further report to the Governing Body in paragraphs 204 to 431 of its 58th Report.
2. 103. The Committee, after reviewing in paragraphs 211 to 219 of its 58th Report the latest position with regard to the ratification by Japan of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), recommended the Governing Body, in paragraph 431 (a) of that report:
   • (a) to take note of the Government's explanation as to the reasons why it was not found possible to present the Bills relating to the ratification of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), to the extraordinary session of the Diet which closed on 31 October 1961, and of the Government's statement that there is no diversion at all in the policy of the Government for early ratification of the Convention and that the Government is ready to exert its efforts to secure approval of the Bills by the Diet by submitting them to the coming ordinary session; to express its disappointment that the Convention which the Government of Japan has on nine separate occasions from 25 February 1959 onwards indicated its intention of ratifying, has not yet been ratified by Japan; and to request the Government to keep the Governing Body informed as to further developments in connection with the Government's expressed intention of submitting Bills providing for the ratification of the Convention to the coming ordinary session of the Diet to be convened at the end of the present year.
3. 104. The Committee formulated definitive recommendations to the Governing Body on several other allegations and, in paragraph 431 (i) of its 58th Report, recommended the Governing Body to take note of its interim report concerning the remaining allegations, with respect to which the Committee had decided to request the Government to be good enough to furnish additional information.
4. 105. The 58th Report of the Committee was approved by the Governing Body at its 150th Session (November 1961). The recommendations and requests for further information contained therein were brought to the notice of the Government of Japan by a letter dated 29 November 1961.

A. A. The complainants' allegations

1. 106. In a communication dated 20 February 1962 the Government furnishes further information as to the present situation with regard to the ratification of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87).
2. 107. The Government declares that the Japanese Cabinet, at its meeting on 5 January 1962, confirmed that its policy is to submit to the current session of the Diet the Bills relating to the ratification of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), and to amendments of the relevant national legislation, and cites a recent statement by the Prime Minister that his Government would like the ratification of the Convention, together with the adjustment of the relevant laws, to be effected as early as possible and that it intends to submit the Convention to the current session of the Diet for approval. The Minister of Labour has made several statements to the same effect. Accordingly, the Government has carried on consultations with the government Party with the object of securing the early submission of the Bills to the Diet; the date of their submission and other related matters are now being examined. In view of the two earlier abortive submissions of the Bills to the Diet, consideration is being given to ways of overcoming the difficulties involved. The Government gives its assurance that it will continue to exert its utmost efforts to overcome these difficulties and to secure the approval by the Diet of the Bills in question, and will furnish information as to further developments.
3. 108. With regard to the seven series of allegations still outstanding, which are enumerated in paragraph 431 (i) of the Committee's 58th Report and concerning which the Committee, at its meeting in November 1961, decided to request the Government to furnish further information before it formulated its recommendations to the Governing Body, the present position is as follows. The Government furnished the information in question in three communications dated 22 January, 13 February and 16 February 1962, received on 29 January, 16 February and 19 February 1962 respectively. In addition, further documents of complaint from the Japan Teachers' Union and the All-Japan Prefectural and Municipal Workers' Union, both dated 10 February 1962, were received on 19 February 1962. As all these documents, which were received so shortly before the present meeting of the Committee, are of considerable length and very detailed, the Committee has deferred its examination of them until its next session, when it will submit a report thereon to the Governing Body.

The Committee's recommendations

1. 109. In these circumstances the Committee recommends the Governing Body:
   • (a) to take note of the statement by the Government in its communication dated 20 February 1962 that the Cabinet has confirmed that its policy is to submit to the current session of the Diet the Bills relating to the ratification of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), and to amendments of the relevant national legislation, that the Prime Minister himself has recently confirmed that it is the Government's intention to submit the Convention to the current session of the Diet for approval, and that the date of such submission is now being examined; to note also the Government's assurance that it will continue to exert its utmost efforts to overcome the difficulties involved and to secure the approval by the Diet of the Bills in question;
   • (b) recalling and reaffirming the disappointment expressed by the Governing Body, when adopting the 58th Report of the Committee, at the fact that the said Convention had still not been ratified by Japan, despite the repeated assurances as to its intention to ratify in which had been given by the Government on nine separate occasions from 25 February 1959 onwards, to express the hope that the Government will, in accordance with its declared intention of submitting the Convention to the current session of the Diet, at last be successful in its efforts to secure the approval by the Diet at its present session of the proposal to ratify the Convention;
   • (c) to request the Government to be good enough to continue to keep the Governing Body informed of further developments in this connection;
   • (d) to take note of the present interim report of the Committee concerning the outstanding allegations enumerated in paragraph 431 (i) of its 58th Report, it being understood that the Committee will report further thereon to the Governing Body at its next session.