Demande directe (CEACR) - adoptée 2024, publiée 113ème session CIT (2025)

Convention (n° 29) sur le travail forcé, 1930 - République dominicaine (Ratification: 1956)

Articles 1(1) and 2(1) of the Convention. Vulnerability of workers of Haitian origin to forced labour. In reply to the Committee’s request on measures taken to protect undocumented workers of Haitian origin to prevent their exposure to the practice of forced labour, The Government provides information on the measures taken by the labour inspection service to protect the labour rights of all workers without distinction. The Government refers in particular to: (i) outreach activities in respect of labour standards; (ii) prioritising labour inspection in the most vulnerable sectors; (iii) investment and training for inspectors in investigation techniques on trafficking and smuggling of persons; and (iv) closer surveillance of sectors where there is a greater concentration of foreigners, with a team of 68 inspectors. Regarding the last point, the Government reports that 13,292 visits have been carried out, of which 5,793 resulted in the issuance of warnings and 455 in detected violations. The Committee observes that the information provided is restricted to action taken by the labour inspectorate.

The Committee also notes, from information available on the website of the General Directorate for Migration, major flows of migration continue to enter the Dominican Republic, with large numbers of Haitian nationals present in the country as migrants in an irregular situation. The Committee observes that the Government has adopted the Plan to prohibit and control migration to reduce the excess migrant population prevalent in the country’s communities and that, in the first six months of 2024, a total of 67,844 foreigners were deported to their countries of origin, of which 66,227 were Haitians.

While recognizing the difficulties faced by the Government due to the high number of Haitian migrants seeking to enter the country as migrants and who are then in an irregular situation, the Committee encourages the Government to continue its efforts to implement the necessary measures to protect those workers from the risk of forced labour and, where they fall victim to forced labour, to provide appropriate assistance and inform them of their rights, regardless of their migratory situation. In this connection, it requests the Government for information on how to ensure that the authorities can determine the possible victims of forced labour, including of trafficking in persons, from among the deported migrants, and on the manner of extending protection to them. The Government is requested to continue to provide information on the visits conducted by the labour inspectorate in sectors where there is a greater presence of Haitian workers, the number of cases of forced labour detected and the administrative and penal sanctions imposed.

Articles 1(1), 2(1) and 25 of the Convention. Trafficking in persons. 1. Legal and institutional framework. The Committee notes the information the Government provides on the adoption of the National Action Plan against Trafficking in Persons 2022-2024, which follows on from the evaluation and results of the previous National Plan and which is based on three strategic pillars: prevention, prosecution and protection. The Committee takes due note of the report on Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants, which contains detailed information on the activities undertaken as part of the National Action Plan. In accordance with that report, the Interinstitutional Committee to Combat Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants (CITIM) held several meetings with different entities, in order to: (i) follow up the Bill to amend Act No. 137-03; (ii) set up a complaints mailbox in cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Police; (iii) support rehabilitation of Dominican victims of trafficking under an interinstitutional agreement between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Supérate (a nongovernmental organization); and (iv) develop training and capacity-building programmes in collaboration with international organizations and specialized agencies. A total of 1,960 State officials have also been trained to undertake roles in migration control, investigations and information gathering, labour inspectors, consular and diplomatic officials, and others.

The Committee hopes that a new National Plan will be adopted to combat trafficking in persons, taking the evaluation of the National Plan 2022-2024 and the recommendations made in that context into account. It requests the Government to report on the results obtained and the challenges encountered in implementing the three strategic pillars of the Plan.

2. Identification of victims and assistance. With regard to measures to facilitate the identification of, and provision of assistance to, victims of trafficking in persons, the Government states that it has put in place a protection system which provides victims with services including: housing, food, transport, custody, medical and psychological care, support in managing the complaints procedure, legal and migration aid, tax exemption and management of voluntary return to the country of origin. The Government also reports that it has held workshops and focus groups to evaluate the existing protocols on care and assistance for victims, which have led to: (i) identification of the need for a shelter home for women victims of trafficking. A shelter was opened in 2021; and (ii) updating the protocol on protection and management of victims of trafficking and of sexual exploitation, the aim of which was to complement previous protocols and guidelines.

The Committee notes the standard operating procedures protocol which establish uniform tools, practices and functions for comprehensive interinstitutional action for the identification, referral and counter-referral of the victims of trafficking in persons in the frontier provinces and border areas. The Committee also notes the practical guide to provision of accompaniment and shelter to victims of trafficking, which aims to standardize such provision for victims of trafficking and other related crimes. The guide focuses on their particular needs and remediation prospects, through a human rights and gender approach. The Government further indicates that during the 2020-2024 period, 384 victims of various forms of trafficking were rescued, and had equal access to the victim assistance and protection system of the Specialized Unit of the Public Prosecutor’s Office. A total of 208 of those victims received assistance in the form of health care, 77 in the purchase of air tickets for voluntary return to their country of origin, 33 were exempted taxation, and 70 were transferred to the security service of the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

The Committee further observes, according to the report on Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants for 2023, that: (i) 76 victims were identified, of which 32 were women; of total victims, 73 received the protection and assistance of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, with access to shelter homes, gynaecological and psychological care, lodging, maintenance and, in the case of foreign victims, consular assistance and exemption from immigration fees and taxes; and (ii) a total of 68 victims collaborated in the investigation voluntarily and obtained legal assistance and representation. The Committee takes due note of this information and requests the Government to continue to take measures to facilitate the identification of, and provide assistance to, victims of trafficking in persons both for the purpose of labour exploitation and for sexual exploitation. The Committee requests the Government to continue communicating information on the number of victims identified, indicating which have received assistance and of what type.

3. Effective application of the law. Regarding criminal prosecutions for trafficking, the Government indicates that between 2021 and 2024, a total of 97 investigations were conducted into trafficking in persons and related crimes. From 70 cases of trafficking in persons, 136 persons were charged, and 22 convictions were handed down under Act No. 137- 03. Moreover, according to the report on Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants, between January and December 2023, 102 cases were investigated, of which 47 were dealt with by the National Police and 55 by the Office of the Public Prosecutor; only six cases were worked on jointly and of those, two can be found in the monitoring or prosecution report. The Committee encourages the Government to continue to make every effort and report on the measures taken to ensure that cases of trafficking in persons, whether for sexual or labour exploitation, are identified and investigated in a proactive manner, so that the perpetrators may be punished. In that regard, it requests the Government to continue providing information on the number of ongoing and completed investigations and judicial procedures, giving details of the cases where the perpetrators have been convicted and the type of penalties exacted in accordance with section 3 of Act No. 137-03, as well as on the difficulties encountered by the competent authorities in sanctioning the perpetrators.

Article 25. Criminalization of and penalties for forced labour. Further to its earlier comments regarding the criminalization of forced labour, the Committee notes that the Government confirms that Act No. 137-03 does not apply in cases of forced labour where at least one of the criteria for the definition of trafficking in persons (procuring, means and purpose) is not met, without prejudice to referral of the case to a specialized labour court.

The Committee reiterates that the criminalization of practices that constitute forced labour is a key element for identifying it properly and prosecuting it. The Committee notes that the Senate of the Republic approved the draft Penal Code at its second reading, and that the Code will be referred to the Chamber of Deputies for its analysis and consideration. Consequently, the Committee refers to its previous comments and requests the Government to take all necessary measures to ensure that, in law and in practice, those situations of forced labour that do not constitute trafficking in persons are identified and penalized adequately, in conformity with Article 25 of the Convention. Noting that a process to revise and adopt a new Criminal Code is under way, the Committee encourages the Government to take advantage of this process to include a provision which criminalizes forced labour.