Suriname - Country baselines under the ILO Declaration Annual Review (2000-2008): Effective abolition of child labour (CL)

Involvement of Employers’ and Workers organizations in the reporting process

YES according to the Government: Involvement of workers, and employers’ organizations by means of consultations and communication of the Government’s report.

OBSERVATIONS BY THE SOCIAL PARTNERS

Employers’ organizations

NIL

Workers’ organizations

2008 AR: Observations by the Confederation of Civil Servants (CLO).

EFFORTS AND PROGRESS MADE IN REALIZING THE PRINCIPLE AND RIGHT

Ratification

Ratification status

Suriname ratified in 2006 the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) (C.182). However, it has not ratified the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) (C.138).

Ratification intention

YES, since 2000 for C. 138.

2008 AR: The Government indicated that once the labour law review on compulsory schooling education is completed, the Council of Ministers will review previous memos regarding the ratification of C.138.

The CLO expressed its support to the ratification of C.138.

2006 AR: According to the Government: C.182 has been approved for ratification by the National Assembly. The next step is the signing of the Instrument of Ratification by the President of the Republic of Suriname.

2005 AR: The Government stated that C.182 had been approved for ratification by the National Assembly and C.138 was also being prepared for approval by the Council of Ministers and submission to the competent authorities.

2004 AR: The Government indicated that C.182 had been submitted to the competent authority in June 2003 for ratification.

2001 AR: based on information in GB.282/LILS/7 and GB.282/8/2 (Nov. 2001), the Government intended to ratify C.138.

2000 AR: The Government reported that C.138 had been discussed by a Tripartite Labour Advisory Board and a proposal made to the Government for ratification.

Recognition of the principle and right (prospect(s), means of action, basic provisions)

Constitution

YES

The Constitution (article 35, sub 3 and article 37) recognizes the principle and right (PR).

Suriname ratified the United Nations Conventions on the Right of the Child.

Policy, legislation and/or regulations

Policy

2005 AR: According to the Government: A process of amending existing legislation has been initiated in order to bring it into conformity with C.182.

2004 AR: The Government intended to adopt a national policy/plan aimed at ensuring the effective abolition of child labour. In addition, for the 2002-06 cycle, the Government had launched a Policy Plan for Children. The main objective of this policy is aimed at enhancing the position of children in general and to give them a better chance in life. In order to achieve the main objective, one of the issues to be addressed was the elimination of child labour. Articles within the Labour Act regarding the prohibition of child labour are also being reviewed.

2003-2004 ARs: The Government intended to adopt a national policy/plan aimed at ensuring the effective abolition of child labour.

2002 AR: There is no national policy or plan aimed at ensuring the effective abolition of child labour, but after the results of a 1998 survey were known, one would be adopted.

Legislation

The Labour Act related to the PR.

2007 AR: According to the Government: A total revision of the labour legislation is now considered. The Ministry of Labour, Technological Development and Environment is finalizing the terms of reference with the Ministry of Planning. Together, they are in the process of seeking financial aid to finalize the revision.

Regulations: Sections 17-21 of the Labour Act; the Sea-fishing Decree of 1980 related to the PR.

EFFORTS AND PROGRESS MADE IN REALIZING THE PRINCIPLE AND RIGHT

Recognition of the principle and right (prospect(s), means of action, basic legal provisions)

Basic legal Provisions

(i) Constitution (articles 35 and 37); (ii) the Labour Act (sections 17-21) and (iii) the Sea-fishing Decree of 1980.

Judicial decisions

NIL

Exercise of the principle and right

Compulsory education

YES: There is a compulsory educational system; the age limit for completion of compulsory schooling is 12 years. The number of years or grades of instruction required to complete compulsory education is set at 6 years.

Minimum Age

2003 AR: General minimum age for admission to employment or work: 14 years for both boys and girls.

However, the law also allows those who have passed the age of compulsory schooling (12 years) to work under certain conditions.

The general minimum age for admission to employment does not cover work performed in a family-owned/operated enterprise, family and small-scale agriculture and light work.

Light work: Children who have exceeded the age of completion of compulsory schooling, can perform certain forms of labour, which are stipulated in the State Decree. The types of activities are: have to be necessary for learning a profession or are normally performed by children; must not be physically or mentally too demanding; and must not be hazardous.

Hazardous work: The minimum age for engaging in hazardous work is 18 years for boys and girls.

Worst forms of child labour

2005 AR: According to the Government: Debt bondage, serfdom, forced or compulsory labour and forced recruitment for armed conflict do not exist in Suriname. It is not known whether sale and/or trafficking or other worst forms of child labour exist. However, prostitution, pornography, and illicit activities, in particular production and trafficking of drugs, are believed or suspected to exist amongst boys and girls.

2002 AR: According to the Government: Laws or regulations do not exist in Suriname with the aim of eliminating any of the worst forms of child labour. The Government indicates steps are currently being taken to modify existing legislation or to introduce new legislation to address the elimination of any of the worst forms of child labour.

Special attention to particular situations

NIL

EFFORTS AND PROGRESS MADE IN REALIZING THE PRINCIPLE AND RIGHT

Exercise of the principle and right

Information/Data collection and dissemination

2002 AR: According to the Government: A survey had been undertaken by the Labour Market Department of the Ministry of Labour providing statistical information on the extent and/or nature of child work. The results of the survey is not yet completed but reports show that an increasing number of street children were offering their services as commercial sex workers in Paramaribo.

2000 AR: According to the Government: The Labour Market Directorate has conducted a study on the local situation, which showed no incidence of child labour in renowned enterprises. However, reports show that there is a rise in child labour in the mining sector and in the informal sector, particularly as street vendors.

Prevention, monitoring, enforcement and sanctions mechanisms

2008 AR: The Government mentioned that a National Commission on Child Labour under the Ministry of Labour would be established shortly in cooperation with other public sectors and will cover provisions of C.138.

2003 AR: According to the Government: The PR is implemented through enforcement of the Labour Act by the Labour Inspection Unit, as well as through penal sanctions mentioned in sections 29-34 of the Act.

Involvement of the social partners

2005 AR: According to the Government: Workers’ and employers’ organizations will be involved in the development and implementation of these measures/programmes of action.

Promotional activities

2008 AR: The CLO indicated that it had organized several skills trainings on the issue of child labour.

2002 AR: According to the Government: Suriname participates in the Plan of Action (2001) programme on the promotion of children’s rights, where problems are reviewed and taken into consideration in accordance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Special initiatives/Progress

2002 AR: According to the Government: The signing of the Convention on the Rights of the Child; the involvement of the Government in the UNICEF programme, resulting in the intention to ratify C.182 can be regarded as successful examples in the abolition of child labour.

CHALLENGES IN REALIZING THE PRINCIPLE AND RIGHT

According to the social partners

Employers’ organizations

NIL

Workers’ organizations

2008 AR: According to the CLO: poverty is the major issue in Suriname.

According to Government

2008 AR: According to the Government and the CLO: the national legislative review is still awaited; there is not sufficient collaboration among the other public sectors (such as the agricultural, industrial or health sectors); and finally, leadership among workers and employers is lacking.

2003 AR: According to the Government: the main obstacles encountered in the realization of the principle of the effective abolition of child labour, were the lengthy procedures for the modification and passage of legislation, and a lack of capacity building of officials especially from the Labour Inspection Department.

2002 AR: According to the Government: The main obstacles encountered with respect to realizing the principles were the need to update legislation, especially the Labour Act, and the delay in processing the 1998 survey results.

TECHNICAL COOPERATION

Request

2008 AR: The Government requested that a country assessment be conducted in Suriname on the Declaration Follow-up and that some best-practices examples on the said issue be provided.

2007 AR: According to the Government: A total revision of the labour legislation is now being considered. The Ministry of Labour, Technological Development and Environment is finalizing the terms of reference with the Ministry of Planning. Together, they are in the process of seeking financial aid to finalize the revision.

2005 AR: The Government requested an in-depth study of the situation in order to establish a Plan of Action for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour and for the training and awareness raising programmes on labour inspectors, specifically in recognizing child labour and acting against it.

Offer

ILO/IPEC/CIDA Sub-Regional Child Labour Project («Identification, elimination and prevention of the worst forms of child labour in the Anglophone and Dutch-speaking Caribbean»); UNICEF Caribbean Sub-Regional Programme.

EXPERT-ADVISERS’ OBSERVATIONS / RECOMMENDATIONS

2008 AR: The ILO Declaration Expert-Advisers (IDEAs) considered that universal ratification of the child labour Conventions was not a distant dream but an achievable goal, in view of the number of States, including Suriname, having expressed their intention to ratify C.138 and/or C.182 (Cf. Paragraph 56 of the 2008 Annual Review Introduction – ILO: GB.301/3).

2007 AR: The IDEAs noted the paucity of practical information of several reports, including Suriname, which complicated their task of assessing the extent to which the PR is realized in the countries concerned. They drew the attention of governments to the possibility of requesting technical assistance from the Office to facilitate fuller and more comprehensive reporting (Cf. Paragraph 52 of the 2007 Annual Review Introduction – ILO: GB.298/3).

GOVERNING BODY OBSERVATIONS / RECOMMENDATIONS

NIL