Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2024, published 113rd ILC session (2025)

Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105) - Zimbabwe (Ratification: 1998)

The Committee notes the observations of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) received on 27 September 2023.

Article 1(a) of the Convention. Penal sanctions involving compulsory labour as a punishment for the expression of views opposed to the established political, social or economic system. For a number of years, the Committee has been drawing the Government’s attention to a number of provisions of the national legislation allowing for the imposition of penal sanctions involving compulsory labour and expressed concern about their continued use as a punishment for the expression of political views or views opposed to the established political, social or economic system. Both the Committee and the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards of the International Labour Conference, in June 2021, urged the Government to repeal or amend these provisions in order to ensure compliance with Article 1(a) of the Convention. The provisions in question are the following:

• sections 31 and 33 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act (Cap. 9:23) (Criminal Law) relating to publishing false statements against the State and insulting the President.
• sections 37 and 41 of the Criminal Law, providing for imprisonment for participating in meetings or gatherings with the intention of disturbing public order, using threatening or abusive language, intending thereby to provoke a breach of peace, and engaging in disorderly conduct for the same purpose.
• sections 7(5) and 8(11) of the Maintenance of Peace and Order Act No. 9 of 2019 (MOPA), providing for imprisonment for failing to notify authorities of public demonstrations or failing to comply with prohibition notices or conditions for public gatherings.

The Committee notes that the Prisons Act, which previously provided for compulsory prison labour for persons convicted to a penalty of imprisonment, has been repealed through the enactment of the Prisons and Correctional Service Act, 2023. The Committee notes the Government’s information, in its report, that the principles within the Prisons and Correctional Service Act emphasize that the objective of the work by prisoners is essentially for rehabilitation purposes, aimed at facilitating successful reintegration into society after serving sentences. The Government states that its practice is in line with the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Mandela Rules), which emphasize the issue of work for the rehabilitation of inmates. The Government adds that sections 7(5) and 8(11) of the MOPA relate to penalties for failing to give notice of a gathering, as required by the law, and have no relation to issues of forced labour. Similarly, the Government considers that sections 31, 33, 37 and 41 of the Criminal Law only apply to persons who engage in the conducts in question with malicious intent. In both cases, the Government contends that the use of labour as part of a sentence is no longer practiced in Zimbabwe given the correctional and rehabilitation thrust currently being implemented in Zimbabwean prisons.

In this regard, the Committee observes that section 124 of the new Prisons and Correctional Service Act reprises the provisions of section 76(1) of the Prisons Act, stipulating that every inmate under sentence of imprisonment “may be kept to work” within or outside the precincts of any prison or correctional facility in any part of the country and in any work or activity that may be approved by the Minister responsible for Prisons and Correctional Service. The Committee also notes that, under section 124 of the Act, unconvicted inmates “may elect” to be given light work. Therefore, the Committee observes that prison labour remains compulsory for convicted persons who receive prison sentences. In this respect, the Committee recalls that, even if designed for rehabilitation purposes, compulsory prison labour has an impact on the application of the Convention when it is imposed with respect to one of the circumstances covered under Article 1 of the Convention.

Moreover, the Committee notes that, in its observations, the ITUC expressed regret that despite numerous and strong comments on these issues, workers in Zimbabwe still face penal sanctions involving compulsory labour as a punishment for expressing views opposed to the established political, social or economic system or for having participated in strikes. The ITUC further alleges that the MOPA and the Criminal Law continue to be applied in a manner to limit the civil liberties and fundamental labour rights of workers, leading to the exaction of heavy fines and long-term prison terms with compulsory labour for any infringement. The legal provisions in question, having remained unchanged, create a climate of fear and repression, impeding the full exercise of civil liberties in the country. The ITUC refers to cases of trade unionists and workers who were again victims of violent acts and arbitrary arrests in 2022. In particular, the ITUC refers to the arrests of Obert Masaraure and Robson Chere, president and Secretary-General respectively of the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) who faced the same charges related to murder, despite a court inquest that concluded that there had been no foul play. These arrests followed the announcement by the trade union in June 2022 of its intention to organize protest actions. The ITUC further recalls that Obert Masaraure has also been facing charges on three counts in three cases since 2019, including the charge of obstructing justice after tweeting that Robson Chere was innocent (in 2022). The ITUC demands the unconditional release of Robson Chere and a withdrawal of all pending criminal cases against him, Obert Masaraure and all other ARTUZ members arrested in January 2022 over a salary protest.

The ITUC also highlights the newly introduced section 22A of the Criminal Law, which addresses “wilfully injuring the sovereignty and national interest of Zimbabwe”. This provision establishes penalties ranging from 20 years to life imprisonment, or even the death penalty, for individuals who participate in meetings involving or convened by foreign government agents to discuss or plan actions such as armed intervention, the subversion or overthrow of Zimbabwe’s constitutional Government, or the consideration or implementation of sanctions or trade boycotts against Zimbabwe. The ITUC observes that these new provisions are in violation of the Convention and further interfere with the exercise of fundamental freedoms, including the right to freedom of association, the right to peaceful assembly, freedom of expression and the right to information.

The Committee notes in this regard that, in his report of 26 September 2022 following his visit to Zimbabwe, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, recalling that he had called upon the Government to revise sanctions so as not to dissuade the holding of future peaceful assemblies and demonstrations, noted that the MOPA still imposes penalties on assembly organizers where no harm has occurred, with the apparent intent of dissuading the holding of peaceful assemblies in practice (A/HRC/50/23/Add.3). Additionally, in a press release dated 24 May 2023, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights expressed concern about the ongoing legal proceedings against human rights defender Obert Masaraure and called for the charges against him to be dropped, indicating that she witnessed what appeared to be “a systematic targeting of human rights defenders from ARTUZ” who were working to promote the right to education and the right to an adequate standard of living for educators in rural areas of Zimbabwe.

The Committee must express its deepconcern that the practice of arrests, prosecutions and convictions involving the imprisonment of persons exercising their right to peaceful assembly still continues and that the legal basis for imposing labour on a person sentenced to imprisonment still exists, in contravention with Article 1(a) of the Convention. The Committee once again strongly urges the Government to take necessary measures to review sections 22A, 31, 33, 37 and 41 of the Criminal Law, as well as sections 7(5) and 8(11) of the MOPA, to ensure that no penalties involving compulsory labour are imposed on anyone for peacefully expressing political views or holding ideological views opposed to the established political, social or economic system.

Pending the adoption of such measures, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the application of the above-mentioned provisions in practice, including on the number of convictions and penalties imposed, as well as on the facts that led to the imposition of convictions.

Article 1(d). Penal sanctions involving compulsory labour as a punishment for having participated in strikes. The Committee previously took note of certain provisions of the Labour Act (sections 102(b), 104(2)–(3), 109(1)–(2), and 112(1)) that establish sanctions of imprisonment, which involve compulsory prison labour, for persons engaged in an unlawful collective action.

The Committee notes the Government’s information that the newly enacted Labour Amendment Act 11 of 2023 has reduced the notice period of intention to go on strike from 14 to 7 days, under section 104(2) of the Labour Act. Moreover, the Government indicates that sections 109(1) and (2) of the Labour Act have been repealed. The Committee observes that these provisions have been replaced with the new sections 109(1) and (2), which retain the penalty of imprisonment for persons engaged in unlawful collective action. The new provisions make an explicit distinction in the penalties when unlawful collective action relates to an essential service (punishable by a fine and/or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding five years (as was the case previously)), or to any other case (punishable with a fine or, in the case of failure to pay the fine, imprisonment not exceeding one year). The same distinction is made under the provisions of section 109(2) of the new Labour Act.

The Committee notes that, in its observations, the ITUC underlines that, under new sections 104, 105 and 106 of the Labour Act, as amended in 2023, any strike can be deemed unlawful if the restrictive conditions imposed for its organization are not followed. Violations of orders under sections 104 to 106 result in criminal penalties, as provided for in sections 109, 111 and 112 of the same Act, including a jail term of one to five years and a fine. The ITUC further indicates that, adding to the provisions of the Labour Act, the Health Service Amendment Act No. 9 of 2022 prescribes a fine and or a jail term of six months, at the discretion of the Court, for health workers who engage in strikes or demonstrations (sections 16A(2)–(3)).

The ITUC observes that the above-mentioned laws and regulations have a profound impact on the trade union movement in Zimbabwe. Among other cases, the ITUC refers to Jacob Ngarivhume, leader of Transform Zimbabwe, who was sentenced to four years in prison for alleged incitement of violence after calling for a peaceful demonstration in 2020. The ITUC also recalls that Obert Masaraure, president of ARTUZ, is still facing charges of subverting a constitutionally elected Government (2019 Teachers Strike Action) and, along with 15 others, bigotry, resulting from the Teachers Strike Action in June 2022.

The Committee notes with regret that, despite its reiterated comments, the provisions of the Labour Act, and now of the Health Service Amendment Act No. 9 of 2022, still establish sanctions of imprisonment, which involves compulsory prison labour, for persons engaged in an unlawful collective action. In this respect, the Committee emphasizes that no penal sanctions (including imprisonment involving compulsory labour) should be imposed against a worker for having peacefully carried out a strike and thus for merely exercising an essential right. Such sanctions could be envisaged only where, during a strike, violence against persons or property, or other serious infringements of penal law have been committed or when the existence or well-being of the whole or part of the population is endangered.

Therefore, the Committee urges the Government to review sections 102(b), 104(2)–(3), 109(1)–(2), and 112(1) of the Labour Act, as amended by the Labour Amendment Act of 2023, and sections 16A(2)–(3) of the Health Service Amendment Act No. 99 of 2022, to ensure that, unless the well-being of the whole or part of the population is endangered, no penalties involving compulsory labour be imposed on workers for participating in strikes peacefully.

The Committee refers to its comments under the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87).