I.

Introduction

1. The Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations, appointed by the Governing Body of the International Labour Office to examine the information and reports submitted under articles 19, 22 and 35 of the Constitution by States Members of the International Labour Organisation on the action taken with regard to Conventions and Recommendations, held its 61st Session in Geneva from 7 to 20 March 1991. The Committee has the honour to present its report to the Governing Body.

2. The Committee has learned with regret that Mr. K. IKAWA and Mr. A.L. SUSSEKIND have ceased to be members. It wishes to pay tribute to the remarkable contribution they have made to the work of the Committee and recall that during their years in office, with their keen intelligence and their experience, Mr. Ikawa and Mr. Sussekind greatly contributed to the Committee's work.

3. The Governing Body has appointed Mr. Cassio MESQUITA BARROS (Brazil) and Mr. Toshio YAMAGUCHI (Japan) to fill the seats that thus fell vacant. The Committee was pleased to welcome them at its present session.

4. The present composition of the Committee is as follows:

Mr. Benjamin AARON (United States),

Mr. Roberto AGO (Italy),

Mrs. Badria AL-AWADHI (Kuwait),

Mr. Prafullachandra Natvarlal BHAGWATI (India),

The Right Honourable Sir William DOUGLAS, PC, KCMG (Barbados),

Mr. Arnold GUBINSKI (Poland),

Mr. Semion A. IVANOV (USSR),

Mr. Bernd Baron von MAYDELL (Federal Republic of Germany),

Mr. Kéba MBAYE (Senegal),

Mr. Cassio MESQUITA BARROS (Brazil),

Mr. Benjamin Obi NWABUEZE (Nigeria),

Mr. Edilbert RAZAFINDRALAMBO (Madagascar),

Mr. José María RUDA (Argentina),

Mr. Antti Johannes SUVIRANTA (Finland),

Mr. Boon Chiang TAN (Singapore),

Mr. Fernando URIBE RESTREPO (Colombia),

Mr. Jean Maurice VERDIER (France),

Mr. Budislav VUKAS (Yugoslavia),

Sir John WOOD (United Kingdom),

Mr. Toshio YAMAGUCHI (Japan),

5. The Committee notes with regret that Mrs. Badria AL-AWADHI has been unable to attend the present session owing to the circumstances prevailing in Kuwait.

6. The Committee elected Mr. J.M. RUDA as Chairman and Mr. E. RAZAFINDRALAMBO as Reporter of the Committee.

7. In pursuance of its terms of reference, as revised by the Governing Body at its 103rd Session (Geneva, 1947), the Committee was called upon to examine:

(i) the annual reports under article 22 of the Constitution on the measures taken by Members to give effect to the provisions of the Conventions to which they are parties, and the information furnished by Members concerning the results of inspection;

(ii) the information and reports concerning Conventions and Recommendations, communicated by Members in accordance with article 19 of the Constitution;

(iii) the information and reports on measures taken by Members in accordance with article 35 of the Constitution.

8. The Committee, after an examination and evaluation of the above-mentioned reports and information, drew up its present report, consisting essentially of the following three parts: Part One is the General Report in which the Committee reviews general questions concerning international labour standards and other instruments and their implementation. Part Two contains observations concerning particular countries on the application of ratified Conventions (see section I and paragraphs 77 to 107 below), on the application of Conventions in non-metropolitan territories (see section II and paragraphs 77 to 107 below), and on the obligation to submit instruments to the competent authorities (see section III and paragraphs 108 to 118 below). Part Three, which is published in a separate volume (Report III (Part 4B)) reviews the reports supplied by governments under article 19 of the Constitution on the Paid Educational Leave Convention (No. 140) and Recommendation (No. 148), 1974, and the Human Resources Development Convention (No. 142) and Recommendation (No. 150), 1975 (see paragraphs 119 to 123 below).

9. In carrying out its task, which consists in indicating the extent to which the situation in each State appears to be in conformity with the terms of the Conventions and the obligations undertaken by that State by virtue of the ILO Constitution, the Committee has followed the principles of independence, objectivity and impartiality set forth in its previous reports. It has continued to apply the working methods recalled in its 1987 report. One such method is the spirit of mutual respect, co-operation and responsibility which has consistently prevailed in the Committee's relations with the International Labour Conference and its Committee on the Application of Standards, whose proceedings the Committee takes fully into consideration, not only in respect of general matters concerning standard-setting activities and supervisory procedures, but also in respect of specific matters concerning the way in which States fulfil their standard-setting obligations.

10. The Committee has examined thoroughly the views expressed by the Employer members and certain Government members at the examination of its report, particularly paragraph 7, by the Committee on the Application of Standards of the International Labour Conference, at its 77th Session (1990). The Committee has a number of observations to make in this connection.

11. In stating that in so far as its views are not contradicted by the International Court of Justice, they are to be considered as valid and generally recognised, the Committee of Experts does not regard those views as decisions having the authority of res judicata, as the Committee is not a court of law. Furthermore, as it has already pointed out on more than one occasion, it has never regarded its views as binding decisions based on a definitive interpretation of the Conventions of which it examines the application by member States. However, it considers that the proper functioning of the standard-setting system of the International Labour Organisation requires that a State should not contest the views expressed by the Committee of Experts on the application of a provision of a Convention that it has ratified and at the same time refrain from making use of the established procedure for obtaining a definitive interpretation of the Convention in question. In such a situation, a doubt would remain as to the obligation to apply the provisions in question and every State would have a power conferred on it which is not conferred by international law. The result would be legal uncertainty as to the meaning and scope of the provisions concerned as long as the question is not settled by a decision of the International Court of Justice; such a situation would be prejudicial to the certainty of law required for the proper functioning of the standard-setting system of the ILO.

12. The views of the Committee of Experts are generally accepted, amongst other reasons, because the Committee is composed of independent persons with direct experience of the different legal systems and because of its tradition of objectivity and impartiality and the careful attention it pays to the work of the other supervisory bodies of the ILO. The Committee of Experts is not the only body to deal with the problem of the application of Conventions and its evaluations do not prevail erga omnes. Its functions require it to determine whether the provisions of a given Convention are observed and hence to examine their content and meaning, and determine their legal scope. It is essential for the ILO system that the views that the Committee is called upon to express in carrying out its functions, in the conditions recalled above, should be considered as valid and generally recognised, subject to any decisions of the International Court of Justice which is the only body empowered to give definitive interpretations of Conventions. The Employer members of the Conference Committee themselves stated that as a general rule they observe the views of the Committee of Experts, though they reserve the right to depart from them. The Committee observes that this statement is not incompatible with the assertions in paragraph 7 of its 1990 report.

13. Furthermore, the Committee of Experts feels that it should stress the fact that its task, which is to ascertain whether national law and practice are consistent with the provisions of a Convention, is essentially specific and pragmatic, and is carried out in the context of an ongoing dialogue with governments. The Committee none the less bears in mind constantly all the different methods of interpreting treaties. In this connection, it must point out that, on examining the right to strike in connection with the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), it took account of the indications and unanimous recommendations of the Committee on Freedom of Association on the subject, approved by the Governing Body of the International Labour Office.

II. GENERAL

Membership of the Organisation

14. Since the Committee's last session the number of member States of the ILO has dropped from 150 to 148, since the Yemen Arab Republic and the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen united on 22 May 1990 to become the Republic of Yemen, and the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany on 3 October 1990.

New standards adopted by the Conference in 1990

15. The Committee notes that at its 77th Session (June 1990), the International Labour Conference adopted the Chemicals Convention (No. 170) and Recommendation (No. 177), 1990, the Night Work Convention (No. 171) and Recommendation (No. 178), 1990, and the Protocol of 1990 to the Night Work (Women) Convention (Revised), 1948.

16. The Accommodation of Crews (Supplementary Provisions) Convention, 1970 (No. 133), will come into force on 27 August 1991. The Repatriation of Seafarers' Convention (Revised), 1987 (No. 166), will come into force on 3 July 1991. The Safety and Health in Construction Convention, 1988 (No. 167), will come into force on 11 January 1991. The Employment Promotion and Protection Against Unemployment Convention, 1988 (No. 168), will come into force on 17 October 1991. The Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169), will come into force on 5 September 1991.

Ratifications and denunciations

17. In 1990, 74 ratifications by 19 member States were registered. The total number of ratifications at 31 December 1990 was 5,508. (Endnote 1) From the beginning of 1991 up to 20 March 1991, 19 ratifications by four member States have been registered.

18. The total number of denunciations not accompanied by the ratification of a revised Convention was 59 at 20 March 1991.

19. Since the Committee's last session, the Director-General has registered two denunciations not accompanied by the ratification of Conventions by Malta. They were the Night Work (Women) Convention, 1919 (No. 4), and the Night Work (Women) Convention (Revised), 1948 (No. 89). The Government indicates that the reasons for its decision principally stem from difficulties of a legal, economic and social nature resulting from the prohibition of the employment of women in night work. The legality of prohibiting women who opt to work at night from doing so is likely to be contested in the courts on grounds of discrimination for reasons of sex. Other difficulties arise in the advanced technology sector of industry where the high capital investment necessitates work on a 24-hour basis. Foreign companies in this sector which are interested in setting up business in Malta see the prohibition as a serious hindrance to their consideration of Malta compared with other locations. The Government feels that, at this stage of Malta's development, because of economic and social considerations, it can no longer justify the enforcement of total prohibition of women in night work. Furthermore, the Government considers that it is at risk of being found at fault with regard to discrimination on grounds of sex contrary to the principle established in article 15 of the Constitution of Malta which obliges the State to ensure "that women workers enjoy equal rights and the same wages for the same work as males", as well as article 46 of the Constitution which guarantees protection of the citizens from discrimination "by any person acting by virtue of any written law" and also other international obligations, including Convention No. 111 of the ILO. (Endnote 2) Before taking its decision, the Government consulted the most representative organisations of employers and workers on the problems encountered and the measures needed to resolve them.

20. The Director-General also registered the denunciations of the Old-Age Insurance (Industry, etc.) Convention, 1933 (No. 35), the Old-Age Insurance (Agriculture) Convention, 1933 (No. 36), by Czechoslovakia; the Holidays with Pay Convention, 1936 (No. 52), the Paid Vacations (Seafarers) Convention (Revised), 1949 (No. 91), by Finland; the Minimum Age (Sea) Convention, 1920 (No. 7), the Minimum Age (Agriculture) Convention, 1921 (No. 10), the Minimum Age (Trimmers and Stokers) Convention, 1921 (No. 15), the Minimum Age (Sea) Convention (Revised), 1936 (No. 58), by Sweden; the Minimum Age (Agriculture) Convention, 1921 (No. 10), the Minimum Age (Trimmers and Stokers) Convention, 1921 (No. 15), by Guatemala; the Minimum Age (Industry) Convention, 1919 (No. 5), the Minimum Age (Agriculture) Convention, 1921 (No. 10), the Minimum Age (Trimmers and Stokers) Convention, 1921 (No. 15), the Minimum Age (Non-Industrial Employment) Convention, 1932 (No. 33), the Minimum Age (Sea) Convention (Revised), 1936 (No. 58), the Minimum Age (Fishermen) Convention, 1959 (No. 112), the Minimum Age (Underground Work) Convention, 1965 (No. 123), by France; the Minimum Age (Industry) Convention, 1919 (No. 5), the Minimum Age (Sea) Convention, 1920 (No. 7), the Minimum Age (Trimmers and Stokers) Convention, 1921 (No. 15), the Minimum Age (Sea) Convention (Revised), 1936 (No. 58), the Minimum Age (Industry) Convention (Revised), 1937 (No. 59), by Mauritius; the Safety Provisions (Building) Convention, 1937 (No. 62), by Hungary and Mexico and the Unemployment Provision Convention, 1934 (No. 44), by Switzerland. These denunciations followed automatically from the ratification by these countries of revising Conventions.

21. In 1990, 21 new declarations were registered concerning the application of Conventions without modifications, to the non-metropolitan territories of France. The number of declarations of application without modifications on 31 December 1990 stood at 2,037.

22. The Committee has re-examined the situation, with regard to obligations under the ILO Constitution, regarding certain non-metropolitan territories that have become independent States (Cook Islands and Niue Island) particularly in the light of the Declaration submitted on 10 November 1988 by the Government of New Zealand to the Secretary-General of the United Nations explaining the situation of the Cook Islands and Niue Island as regards treaties concluded by New Zealand. The Committee will pursue its examination of this matter as soon as the parties concerned have explained the implications of the above Declaration.

Constitutional and other procedures

23. The Committee was informed of the following decisions taken by the Governing Body in cases involving recourse to the constitutional procedures of complaint and representation and other procedures.

A. Complaints submitted under article 26 of the ILO Constitution

Complaint against Nicaragua

24. The Committee takes note of the report of the Commission of Inquiry established to examine a complaint alleging non-compliance by Nicaragua with the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98), and the Tripartite Consultation (International Labour Standards) Convention, 1976 (No. 144), submitted under article 26 of the ILO Constitution by several Employers' delegates to the 73rd (1987) Session of the International Labour Conference. In June 1990 the Commission of Inquiry heard representatives of the parties in Geneva, and visited Nicaragua on two occasions, in July and September 1990. The Commission's report was submitted to the Governing Body at its 249th Session (February-March 1991); the Governing Body decided to postpone discussion of the report to its Session of May 1991.

Complaint against Romania

25. Since the last meeting of the Committee of Experts, the Commission of Inquiry established to examine the application of the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), by Romania, which met for the first time in January 1990, has held two sessions. The second session (2-4 July 1990) was devoted to an examination of the situation in Romania since the events of December 1989 and the choice of witnesses presented by the parties or invited by the Commission to provide information to it. During its third session (2-13 October 1990), the Commission heard witnesses and visited Romania. The report of the Commission will be examined at its fourth session (25-28 March 1991).

B. Representations submitted under article 24 of the ILO Constitution

Representation concerning Turkey

26. The representation concerning Turkey, presented by the General Confederation of Norwegian Trade Unions under article 24 of the Constitution with regard to the non-observance of the Right of Association (Agriculture) Convention, 1921 (No. 11), and the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98), was examined by the Committee on Freedom of Association together with numerous complaints presented by a number of international trade union organisations (Cases Nos. 997, 999 and 1029). At its 245th, 246th and 247th Sessions (February, May-June and November 1990), the Governing Body approved the interim conclusions of the Committee on Freedom of Association.

Representation concerning Argentina

27. At its 246th Session (May-June 1990) the Governing Body approved the 247th Report of the Committee on Freedom of Association concerning the representation presented by the Industrial Union of Argentina concerning the application of the Freedom of Association and the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) (Case No. 1455) as well as complaints (Cases Nos. 1456, 1496 and 1515) presented by several trade unions on the same subject. The Governing Body took note of the report of the direct contacts mission to Argentina (19-23 March 1990).

Representation concerning Mauritania

28. The Committee established to examine the representation presented by the National Confederation of Workers of Senegal (CNTS) alleging non-observance by Mauritania of the Protection of Wages Convention, 1949 (No. 95), the Social Security (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1952 (No. 102), the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), the Equality of Treatment (Social Security) Convention, 1962 (No. 118), and the Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122), adopted its report. The report was approved at the February-March 1991 Session of the Governing Body which declared the procedure closed and recommended to the Government, on the basis of the representation, that - in particular - relevant information be communicated with the reports on the Conventions in question.

Representation concerning Iraq

29. At its 248th Session (November 1990) the Governing Body established a tripartite committee to examine the representation presented by the Federation of Egyptian Trade Unions alleging non-observance by Iraq of the Protection of Wages Convention, 1949 (No. 95), the Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105), the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), and the Equality of Treatment (Social Security) Convention, 1968 (No. 118). The first meeting of the Committee was held in December 1990.

Representation concerning the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya

30. The procedure concerning the representation presented by the Federation of Egyptian Trade Unions alleging the non-observance by the Libyan Arab Jamahiriyah of the Protection of Wages Convention, 1949 (No. 95), and the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), was suspended by a decision of the Governing Body at its 240th Session (May-June 1988), pending results of negotiations between the interested parties. The procedure remains suspended.

C. Special procedures concerning freedom of association

31. At each of its last three meetings (May 1990, November 1990 and February 1991), the Committee on Freedom of Association has had before it an average of 70 cases concerning more than 40 countries from all parts of the world; cases for which it presented interim or definitive conclusions, or cases of which the examination has been adjourned pending the arrival of information from the governments (272nd-277th Reports). Some of these cases have been before the Committee on two occasions. Moreover, since March 1990, nearly 50 new cases were submitted to the Organisation.

32. The Committee has noted that the Committee on Freedom of Association of the Governing Body recommended that the Committee's attention be drawn to certain aspects of the conclusions adopted on a number of the cases it examined. These cases included those concerning Australia (Case No. 1511), Barbados (Case No. 1505), Canada/British Colombia (Case No. 1547), Costa Rica (Case No. 1483), Dominican Republic (Case No. 1549), Indonesia (Case No. 1431), Morocco (Case No. 1499), Paraguay (Case No. 1341), United Kingdom (Cases Nos. 1518 and 1540) and Turkey (Case No. 1521).

33. In accordance with the procedure for the examination of complaints concerning violations of trade union rights, established in 1950 by agreement between the United Nations and the ILO, the Governing Body, at its 240th Session (May-June 1988), referred the complaint submitted by the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) against the Government of the Republic of South Africa to the United Nations Economic and Social Council. In July 1988, the Secretary-General of the United Nations requested the Government of South Africa to consent to the complaint being referred to the Fact-Finding and Conciliation Commission on Freedom of Association. This request was reiterated in February 1990. On both occasions, the Government replied that it considered that it would be "premature" to refer the complaint to the Commission. In a communication addressed to the Director-General of the ILO on 19 February 1991, the Government consented to the complaint being referred to the Fact-Finding and Conciliation Commission on Freedom of Association. The above communication was forwarded to the Secretary-General of the United Nations for examination by the Economic and Social Council at its meeting of May 1991. In accordance with the procedure in force, it will be for the Economic and Social Council to transmit to the Fact-Finding and Conciliation Commission on Freedom of Association, through the ILO Governing Body, all allegations of violations of trade union rights by the Republic of South Africa which it considers should be transmitted.

Functions in regard to other international and regional instruments

A. International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

34. In accordance with the procedure approved by the Governing Body at its 236th Session (May 1987), by a communication dated 26 October 1990, the International Labour Office conveyed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, for transmission to the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, information concerning the situation in ten States whose reports were communicated to the Office by the United Nations. Five of these reports (Afghanistan, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Panama and Yemen) concerned the implementation of articles 6 to 9 of the Covenant which deal with the right to work, the right to just and favourable conditions of work, freedom of association, and the right to social security. Five reports (Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Panama and Yemen) concerned the implementation of article 10 of the Covenant which covers protection of maternity, children and adolescents in the context of employment and work.

B. United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women

35. In conformity with Article 22 of this Convention, the ILO was represented at the Sixth Session (January-February 1991) of the Committee for the Elimination of Discrimination against Women which is responsible for examining reports on the application of the Convention from States which are parties to it. At the invitation of the above Committee, the Office submitted a report to the session on the application of the Convention in the areas which are within the scope of its activities.

C. European Code of Social Security and Protocol thereto

36. In accordance with the established supervisory procedure, 15 reports on the European Code of Social Security and the Protocol thereto, which had been submitted by the States having ratified these instruments, were sent to the Office by the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe. After examining all these reports, the Committee was able to observe that the great majority of the States parties to the Code and the Protocol continue to apply them in full or nearly in full. At the sitting of the Committee in which it examined the report on the application of the European Code of Social Security and the Protocol thereto, the Council of Europe was represented by Mr. S.G. Nagel, chief administrator of the Social Security Division. The conclusions of the Committee regarding these reports will be sent to the Council of Europe. The Committee also noted that a representative of the ILO participated as technical adviser in the meeting of the Steering Committee for Social Security of the Council of Europe, held in Lisbon in October 1990. As in previous years, the Steering Committee approved the conclusions of the Committee of Experts.

37. The Committee was informed that the revised European Code of Social Security was opened for signature on 6 November 1990 at Strasbourg. To date, the governments of the following countries have signed the above Code: Belgium, Cyprus, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden, Turkey.

D. European Social Charter and Additional Protocol

38. In the context of collaboration with the Council of Europe, an ILO representative attended, in an advisory capacity and in accordance with article 26 of the European Social Charter, the 97th, 98th, 99th and 100th Sessions of the Committee of Independent Experts set up to supervise the application of the Charter, held in Strasbourg, respectively, in April, May, July and October 1990. Furthermore, a representative of the International Labour Office attended the first meeting, held in Strasbourg in February 1991, of the Committee for the European Social Charter responsible for making proposals to improve the effectiveness of the European Social Charter, particularly as regards the operation of its supervisory machinery.

39. In addition, the Committee was informed that the European Social Charter was ratified by Belgium on 16 October 1990 and came into force for that country on 15 November 1990. Moreover, the Additional Protocol to the European Social Charter, which was opened for signature on 5 May 1988 at Strasbourg has been signed by the following countries: Austria, Cyprus, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Turkey, and was ratified by Sweden on 5 May 1989 (3 ratifications are necessary for its entry into force).

Collaboration with other international organisations

Co-operation with the United Nations, its specialised agencies and other institutions as regards standards

40. In the context of the collaboration established with other international organisations on questions concerning the supervision of the application of international instruments relating to subjects of common interest, copies of the reports received under article 22 of the Constitution were forwarded to the United Nations and to other specialised agencies and intergovernmental organisations with which the ILO has entered into special arrangements for this purpose.

41. Thus, in accordance with established practice, copies of the reports received on the Indigenous and Tribal Populations Convention, 1957 (No. 107), were forwarded for comments to the United Nations, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and the World Health Organisation (WHO); copies of these reports have also been sent to the Inter-American Indian Institute of the Organisation of American States. Copies of the reports on the Nursing Personnel Convention, 1977 (No. 149), were forwarded to the WHO, and a copy of the report on the Migrant Workers (Supplementary Provisions) Convention, 1975 (No. 143), was sent to the WHO, UNESCO and the United Nations. Copies of reports on the Human Resources Development Convention, 1975 (No. 142), were forwarded to UNESCO (see in this regard paragraphs 21 to 23 of this year's General Survey by the Committee).

42. These organisations were invited to be represented at the sittings of the Committee of Experts at which the Conventions in question were discussed. A representative of the United Nations attended the present session of the Committee.

Matters relating to human rights

43. The Committee is fully aware that international labour standards embody the human rights that fall within the mandate of the ILO. It is the Committee's practice to note developments in this area in its General Report.

44. The Committee was informed that the Director-General wrote to the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Human Rights and to the Administrator of the UNDP, who are the joint authors of a circular letter on technical co-operation and human rights addressed to all UNDP resident representatives, expressing his agreement and support and suggesting that the three bodies concerned should pursue their consultations on this subject. In May 1990, the Director-General met with the Under-Secretary-General for Human Rights, and a joint working group was established composed of representatives from the ILO and the Centre for Human Rights, with a view to a closer co-operation between the two organisations in the field of technical assistance in matters of human rights. The Committee has noted these developments with great interest. It is convinced that any activities undertaken as part of this co-operation will contribute to greater respect for and the effective realisation of human rights and the corresponding ILO standards.

45. The Committee has noted that, on 18 December 1990, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families. The Committee draws attention to the obvious links between this important Convention and the mandate, objectives and relevant standards of the ILO, as does the preamble to the new instrument. The Committee has therefore noted with interest that, in accordance with Article 74 of the Convention, the ILO will be directly associated in supervising its implementation. The Committee expects that the ILO will make an effective contribution to the application of the Convention on the protection of the rights of migrant workers, just as it has in respect of other United Nations instruments.

Questions concerning the application of Conventions

Application of the Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122)

46. This year the Committee was able to examine a relatively limited number of reports, and in some cases, in the absence of new information, it was only able to repeat its earlier comments. None the less, some general conclusions may be drawn from the 1988-90 exercise.

47. Towards the end of the period of review, the rise in production and employment noted in the Committee's last report seems to have flattened out. Growth has slowed, inflation appears to be increasing, and unemployment - which decreased in the upturn - has again started to increase, threatening to wipe out the gains. Apart from its economic and financial burden, unemployment is discriminatory and unevenly spread: information received shows the persistence or aggravation of long-term unemployment and its unequal impact on different groups of the population. The problems of employment, unemployment and underemployment are undiminished in developing countries, most of which are primary producers and derived no benefit from the period of growth in the industrialised countries. Faced with internal problems such as structural adjustment, and external debt, developing countries (and most especially the "least developed countries") seem more than ever trapped in a vicious circle of stagnation, recession, inflation, unemployment and poverty.

48. This overview should not give the impression that the countries which have ratified the Convention do not take its aims very seriously. The reports show their concern and the efforts made and measures taken, in the framework of employment policies, that are "appropriate to national conditions and practices". However, they seem to confirm, sometimes explicitly, this point made by the Director-General in his Report to the 75th Session of the Conference (1988), that for many countries full employment appears to be an impossible aim and has ceased to be a "major goal", as required by Article 1 of the Convention. Stabilisation and structural adaptation of the economy have been given higher priority in the catalogue of objectives of political economy. Most reports show that governments are considering "active" or "passive" employment policy measures. Among "active" measures, education and training policies related to employment and general development policies are, it is noted with satisfaction, receiving much greater attention as is necessary in a period of technological change and economic restructuring so as to maintain productivity and competitivity. Such actions are particularly in evidence in the Committee's General Survey this year of the human resources development Conventions and Recommendations.

49. The Committee will continue to draw attention to these developments which, by widening the distance between the standard and its practical application threaten the central principle of the Convention. It must at the same time emphasise that States party to the Convention have committed themselves to formulating and applying "as a major goal, an active policy designed to promote full, productive and freely chosen employment". In connection with this, the Committee notes with interest that, due in part to the efforts of the ILO, the International Development Strategy for the United Nations Fourth Development Decade gives prominence to the concern for the creation of productive employment and the development of human resources.

50. The Committee has continued to follow closely the application of the Convention in Eastern and Central Europe. Strategies for the transition to a market economy are being adapted to the conditions in each country which show differing speeds of reform, means of implementation and apportionment of the costs that need inevitably to be borne. Some members of the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards rightly stressed both what had been achieved and also what was promised by these changes. However relevant, such developments are bound to be in many ways disruptive, particularly in respect of the employment market, as the reports received show. The problems of redistribution and mobility of labour, unemployment, and the levels of wages and incomes pose problems for governments. Their reports indicate measures taken to create a legislative and institutional framework, so as to organise the new labour markets and implement an overall employment policy as part of the process of transforming society. The Committee notes with interest that these efforts have been and continue to be guided by the ILO's standards and supported by its technical co-operation, especially in the process of drafting legislation on employment or assisting in the organisation of employment services. The Committee reiterates its concern that the social protection of workers affected by reforms should be given the highest priority. The Committee notes the measures taken or envisaged to this end. It would encourage governments to coninue working for the promotion of the social goals during the economic transformation. In this respect, social dialogue and the consultation of the social partners in the letter and the spirit of Article 3 of the Convention have special importance, which the Committee would stress.

Application of the Tripartite Consultation (International Labour Standards) Convention, 1976 (No. 144)

51. The Committee has noted communications from several national employers' organisations and one organisation of workers of the member States of the European Communities referring to the growing problems concerning the rights and obligations deriving from the ILO Constitution and Convention No. 144 for the countries that have ratified it, in relation to the regulations and practice followed by the relevant authorities of the European Communities.

52. The Committee refers to the comments that it has been making for several years on this matter and recalls that the question of the relation between the rights and obligations deriving from the ILO Constitution and the rights and obligations deriving from treaties establishing regional groupings was discussed by the Governing Body in 1981.

53. The Committee notes the concern expressed by the Council and the Commission of the Community in the decision of the Council of 22 December 1986 that full respect for Convention No. 144 should be ensured in the preparation of draft instruments of the ILO, on subjects which are of the exclusive competence of the Community. The Committee reiterates the hope that the same concern will be shown when instruments are submitted to the competent authorities and that "effective" consultations will be genuinely ensured at the national level in full observance of Articles 2 and 5 of Convention No. 144.

Application of the Labour Administration Convention, 1978 (No. 150)

54. Reports on this Convention were requested this year from the 34 States that have ratified it and the Committee takes this opportunity to make some general observations on its supervisory work. In providing for a co-ordinated and effective labour administration that ensures appropriate co-operation with employers and workers, Convention No. 150 refers to activities that are dealt with in detail in several other instruments - for example the instruments on labour inspection, employment services, employment policy, human resources development and tripartite consultations. The important promotional aspect of this Convention is that it provides for labour administration bodies that deal with all matters relating to labour policy, including its international aspects, and that it provides for their responsibilities to be extended both by making their services and advice available to employers and workers and by dealing with workers who are not employees and therefore do not have an employment relationship.

55. During the ten years since the Convention came into force, the Committee has sought all available information on the structure and functioning of the labour administration system in each country. Many governments have provided extensive information for which the Committee expresses its appreciation, particularly as such information is useful to the relevant technical departments of the International Labour Office, including the regional labour administration centres. In practice, Convention No. 150 serves as a framework for much of the Office's research and related co-operation activities relating to labour administration in both developing and industrialised countries. From this standpoint, the Committee is of the view that the ratification of the Convention and its application in the full meaning of the term could be the linchpin of a closer relationship, at national level, between international labour standards and technical co-operation activities. The Committee attaches great importance to the Office's promotional activities in connection with the Convention, and it recommends States that have not already done so to ratify it. It notes that the provisions of the Convention are sufficiently flexible to be adapted to national circumstances in countries with different types of labour administration structures. The Committee hopes that the governments of States which are bound to do so will provide full information on the application of the Convention in all areas of activity relating to labour administration (as listed, for example, in the Labour Administration Recommendation (No. 158), accompanying the Convention). The Committee trusts that organisations of employers and workers will make the most of the opportunities offered by Convention No. 150.

Matters relating to "international" shipping registers

56. The Committee has noted that the application of Conventions Nos. 87, 98 and 111 on board ship has given rise to difficulties in the case of one member State that has opened a "second" shipping register (sometimes called an "international" register). As the Committee has pointed out in its General Survey of 1990 on Labour Standards on Merchant Ships (paragraphs 13 and 14) the purpose of such registers - which currently exist in several States - is to remedy the loss of employment and revenue to all concerned in the shipping industry in the "traditional" maritime countries whose fleets have been reduced in size as a result of considerable transfers of vessels to registers of other countries known as "open-register countries". Ships registered in "second registers" are different from those registered in "normal" registers in that they are exempt from taxation; this exemption may extend to personal taxation on the earnings of crew members who are not nationals of or resident or domiciled in the country of registration; the shipowner or manager may thus in practice have an added incentive to employ foreign seafarers on board their ships. Another problem may arise as to some aspects of conditions of employment on such ships (such as collective bargaining and the level of take-home pay), as they may be governed by several collective agreements (see the observations addressed to Denmark on the application of Conventions Nos. 87, 98 and 111). Specific problems may arise in connection with the right to organise and collective bargaining, and equal treatment as persons with comparable qualifications and performing work of equal value, especially on the same ship, may be subject to different conditions of employment, and particularly different remuneration.

57. As it has already stated, the Committee considers that this situation calls for a detailed examination. Certain questions - including social security issues - have been addressed in the context of the Merchant Shipping (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1976 (No. 147), itself, or in the Conventions referred to in its Appendix (see, for example, the above General Survey). Other questions may not be easy to deal with in the appropriate manner in the context of Convention No. 111 which does not explicitly cover discrimination on grounds of nationality. However, any indirect discrimination arising on grounds set out in Article 1(1)(a) of the Convention, such as race, colour, national extraction, social origin or religion, is covered by the Convention. In any event, the Committee considers that it would be desirable, as was suggested by the Government representative of Denmark at the Conference Committee in 1989, for the question of "international" shipping registers to be discussed as such in an appropriate body. The Committee wishes to draw the attention of the competent bodies of the ILO to these matters with a view to their being examined.

Application of Conventions to offshore industrial installations

58. The Committee refers to the comments that it has been making since 1981 on the question of the applicability of international labour Conventions to offshore industrial installations used in the exploration and extraction of mineral and petroleum resources at sea. It expressed the hope that in due course a comparative study of the law and practice of a selected number of countries would be carried out.

Application of Conventions in export processing zones or enterprises

59. As the Committee has indicated previously, it is continuing its consideration of this question, where appropriate, within the framework of its regular supervision of the application of ratified Conventions, namely, in the observations and direct requests addressed to the countries concerned.

III. PROCEDURE OF DIRECT CONTACTS AND OTHER FORMS OF ASSISTANCE TO GOVERNMENTS

A. Direct contacts and assistance in the field of standards

60. Direct contacts missions took place in Argentina (April 1990) in regard to freedom of association and in the Dominican Republic (January 1991) concerning the situation of Haitian workers on sugar plantations. Advisory missions in the field of standards took place in Australia, Bulgaria, Guinea and Romania.

61. The regional advisers on standards, whose tasks consist essentially in assisting governments in finding solutions to standards-related problems, visited the following countries: Africa: Benin, Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, Swaziland, United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda and Zaire; Americas: Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Guatamala, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Saint Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay and Venezuela; Asia and Pacific: Bangladesh, Cook Islands, Fiji, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Singapore and Sri Lanka.

62. The programme of internships and seminars designed to familiarise national labour administration officials and representatives of employers' and workers' organisations with the obligations of member States and the standards-related procedures of the ILO continues.

63. During 1990, 22 participants (including a judge from Senegal and a representative of the Organisation of African Trade Union Unity) and eight observers from the following 27 countries received training with the International Labour Standards Department: Angola, Belgium, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Djibouti, France, Germany, Guatamala, Jamaica, Mauritius, Nepal, Nicaragua, Poland, the Republic of Korea, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Switzerland, Swaziland, Togo, Uganda, the United Kingdom, the United States, Yemen and Zaire.

64. During 1990, several regional and subregional seminars were organised on international labour standards: Africa: the Sixth African Subregional Seminar on National and International Labour Standards (French-speaking countries) was held in Cotonou (Benin); a Tripartite Subregional Seminar for the Promotion of Equality of Opportunity and Treatment in Employment in North African Countries was held in Cairo (Egypt); Asia and the Pacific: an Asian and Pacific Workshop on Standards-related Subjects was held in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia); an Asian and Pacific Regional Symposium on the Promotion of Equality for Women Workers was held in Canberra/Sydney (Australia); an Asian Regional Tripartite Seminar on Freedom of Association was held in Islamabad (Pakistan); an Asian Subregional Seminar on International Labour Standards concerning Rural Development was held in Dhaka (Bangladesh); Americas and the Caribbean: an ILO/Caribbean Congress of Labour Seminar on Freedom of Association for Workers' Organisations of the English-speaking Caribbean was held in Bridgetown (Barbados).

65. Tripartite and non-governmental national seminars promoting and providing assistance relating to standards were held in the following countries: Argentina, Australia, Costa Rica, Germany, Guinea, Hungary, Italy, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, the United Kingdom, Uruguay, the United Republic of Tanzania, the USSR and Zimbabwe.

B. ILO standards and technical co-operation

66. During 1990 and in January 1991, several workshops were organised on the links between international labour standards and technical co-operation. Two of these workshops, principally designed for ILO officials and experts, were held in Geneva. Furthermore, workshops with the participation of representatives of donor countries or organisations, and representatives of governments, employers and workers were held at the ILO International Centre for Advanced Technical and Vocational Training in Turin (Italy), in Manila (Philippines), where an orientation meeting was also held for members of Parliament, and in Dakar, Senegal. At the end of the year a regional inter-agency meeting was held in Bangkok on indigenous and tribal peoples.

67. The attention of the ILO departments at headquarters and in the field have been drawn to certain of the comments of the Committee of Experts and the Conference Committee which are particularly susceptible to be followed up by technical co-operation. The information received from this follow-up has been made available to the Committee of Experts.

68. For its part, the Committee will continue to point out to governments that it is useful to resort to ILO technical co-operation in cases where the Committee considers that the application of a Convention is coming up against difficulties which this type of co-operation could help to solve.

IV. ROLE OF EMPLOYERS' AND WORKERS' ORGANISATIONS

69. At each session, the Committee draws the attention of governments to the role that employers' and workers' organisations are called upon to play in the application of Conventions and Recommendations and to the fact that numerous Conventions require consultation with employers' and workers' organisations, or their collaboration in a variety of measures. The Committee has once again noted with satisfaction that almost all governments have indicated in the reports supplied under article 22 of the Constitution the representative organisations of employers and workers to which, in accordance with article 23, paragraph 2, of the Constitution, they have communicated copies of the reports supplied to the ILO. (Endnote 3) Almost all governments have also indicated the organisations to which they have communicated copies of the information supplied to the ILO on the submission to the competent authorities of the instruments adopted by the Conference (Endnote 4) and the reports due under article 19 of the Constitution.

70. In accordance with established practice, the ILO sent to the representative organisations of employers and workers a letter concerning the various opportunities open to them of contributing to the implementation of Conventions and Recommendations, accompanied by relevant documentary material, and a list of the reports due from their respective governments and copies of The Committee's comments to which governments were invited to reply in their reports.

Observations by employers' and workers' organisations

71. Since its last session, the Committee has received 183 observations, 56 of which were communicated by employers' organisations and 127 by workers' organisations. This is the highest number of observations ever received. It shows again the interest of employers' and workers' organisations in the implementation of ILO standards and reflects the constant efforts made by the supervisory bodies of the Office to give interested organisations complete information on their role in this area.

72. The majority of observations received (163) relate to the application of ratified Conventions. (Endnote 5) Twenty observations relate to the reports provided by governments under article 19 of the Constitution relating to the Paid Educational Leave Convention (No. 140) and Recommendation (No. 148), 1974, as well as to the Human Resources Development Convention, (No. 142) and Recommendation (No. 150), 1975. (Endnote 6)

73. The Committee notes that, of the observations received this year, 102 were transmitted directly to the ILO, which, in accordance with established practice, referred them to the governments concerned for comment. In 81 cases the governments transmitted the observations with their reports, sometimes adding their own comments. Part Two of this Report contains the Committee's comments on cases where the observation raised an issue concerning the application of ratified Conventions.

74. The Committee also examined a number of other observations by employers' and workers' organisations whose examination had been postponed from the last session, because the observations of the organisations or the replies of the governments had arrived just before or just after the session. It had to postpone the examination of a number of observations to its next session, when they were received too close to or even during the Committee's meeting, so as to allow sufficient time for the governments concerned to make comments and for the Committee to consider the matters involved.

75. The Committee notes that in most cases the organisations of employers and workers had endeavoured to gather and present precise facts on the application in practice of ratified Conventions. It notes that the matters dealt with in these observations have touched on a very wide range of Conventions relating to the following subjects: protection of the right to organise and the right to collective bargaining, discrimination, forced labour, employment policy, labour inspection, tripartite consultations relating to international labour standards, maritime labour.

76. The Committee finally notes that the Tripartite Consultation (International Labour Standards) Convention, 1976 (No. 144), has now received 50 ratifications. The Committee hopes that, in accordance with the favourable ratification prospects noted in the General Survey on the Convention in 1982, (Endnote 7) many further countries will be able to ratify it, all the more since some have recently adopted provisions to establish tripartite bodies for ILO activities, with reference to the 1976 instruments.

V. REPORTS ON RATIFIED CONVENTIONS

Supply of reports

77. The Committee's principal task consists of the examination of the reports supplied by governments on Conventions which have been ratified by member States or which have been declared applicable to non-metropolitan territories.

78. In accordance with the procedure for reporting that has been in force since 1977, detailed reports from all ratifying States, covering the period ending 30 June 1990, were due to be examined this year in respect of 38 Conventions. (Endnote 8) In addition, detailed reports were also requested from certain governments on other Conventions, in accordance with the criteria for more frequent reporting approved by the Governing Body and set out in paragraph 38 of the Committee's 1977 Report.

Reports requested and received

79. A total of 1,958 detailed reports were requested from governments on the application of Conventions ratified by member States (article 22 of the Constitution). At the end of the present session of the Committee, 1,409 of these reports had been received by the Office. This figure corresponds to 71.9 per cent of the reports requested, compared with 73.0 per cent last year. The Committee regrets that, as indicated in paragraph 92 below, a number of reports received are incomplete and do not enable it to reach conclusions regarding the application of the Conventions concerned. A table showing reports received and reports overdue, classified by country and by Convention, is to be found in Part Two (section I, Appendix I). Another table (section I, Appendix II) shows, for each year in which the Committee has met since 1933, the number and percentage of reports which were received by the prescribed date, by the date of the meeting of the Committee and by the date of the Session of the International Labour Conference.

80. In addition, 400 reports were requested on Conventions which have been declared applicable with or without modifications to non-metropolitan territories (articles 22 and 35 of the Constitution). Of these, 322 reports, or 80.5 per cent, had been received by the end of the Committee's session, in comparison with 75.9 per cent in 1990. A list of the reports received and those which are overdue, classified by territory and by Convention, may be found in the Appendix to section II of Part Two of this Report.

81. Apart from the above-mentioned reports, 21 governments also supplied general reports on the Conventions for which detailed reports were not due for the period under review: Belize, Barbados, Belgium, Brazil, Burundi, Canada, Chile, Cuba, Cyprus, Ethiopia, Mozambique, New Zealand, Poland, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Switzerland, Turkey, United States.

82. In those cases in which the reports were not accompanied by copies of the relevant legislation, statistical data or other documentation necessary for their full examination, and in which this material was not otherwise available, the Office, as requested by the Committee, wrote to the governments concerned asking them to supply the necessary texts in order to enable the Committee to fulfil its task.

Compliance with reporting obligations

83. Most of the governments from which reports were due on the application of ratified Conventions have supplied all or most of the reports requested, as can be seen from Appendix I to Part Two, section I. However, 37 governments have not complied with their obligation to supply reports on ratified Conventions. Thus, all or the majority of the reports due this year have not been received from the following countries: Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Colombia, Djibouti, Dominica, El Salvador, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Italy, Kuwait, Lebanon, Liberia, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mongolia, Niger, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Saint Lucia, Seychelles, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Yemen, Yugoslavia, Zimbabwe, New Zealand (Tokelau). No reports have been received for the past two years from the following countries: Grenada, Mauritania, Netherlands (Aruba), Sierra Leone.

84. The Committee urges the governments of these countries, and also of those which have sent only some of the reports due, to make every effort to supply the reports requested on ratified Conventions. Where no reports have been sent for a number of years, it often seems likely that some particular problem of an administrative or technical nature is preventing the government concerned from fulfilling its obligations under the ILO Constitution, and it may be that in cases of this kind assistance from the Office, in particular the help of the regional advisers on standards, could enable the government to overcome its difficulties.

Late reports

85. The Committee is once again bound to emphasise the importance of communicating reports in due time. Reports are requested on ratified Conventions by 15 October each year at the latest. Due consideration is given, when fixing this date, to the time required to translate the reports, where necessary, to conduct research into legislation and other necessary documents, and to examine reports and legislation, etc. The supervisory procedure can function correctly only if reports are communicated in due time. This is particularly true in the case of first reports or reports on Conventions where there are serious or continuing discrepancies, which the Committee has to examine in greater depth.

86. The Committee observes that the great majority of reports are thus received between the time-limit fixed and the date on which the Committee meets: by 15 October 1990 the proportion of reports received was only 9.6 per cent. The Committee is still very concerned at this percentage, which is very low, and notes that it is often the first reports and those relating to Conventions on which the Committee has made comments that are received the latest. In these circumstances, the Committee has been bound in recent years to postpone to its following session the examination of an increasing number of reports, since they could not be examined with the necessary care owing to lack of time. It has thus had to examine a number of reports at its present session that had been held over from 1990.

87. The Committee can only express once again its great concern over this state of affairs, despite the relief that the four-year system of reporting and the various measures of assistance provided by the Office are intended to introduce. The Committee trusts that governments will in future endeavour to observe the time-limits laid down for the sending of their reports so that it can carry out its supervisory function adequately.

88. Furthermore, the Committee notes that for several years a number of countries have been regularly supplying the reports due on ratified Conventions in the period between the end of its work and the beginning of the International Labour Conference or during the Conference. The Committee notes that this practice disturbs the regular functioning of the supervisory system and contributes to making it more burdensome.

Supply of first reports

89. A total of 85 first reports of the 105 due on the application of ratified Conventions were received by the time that the Committee's session opened. However, a number of countries have failed to supply first reports, some of which are more than a year overdue. Thus, certain first reports on ratified Conventions have not been received from the following States since 1988: Ghana (Convention No. 148); Netherlands: Aruba (Conventions Nos. 114, 121, 126, 129, 131, 135, 137, 140, 141, 142, 144, 145, 146 and 147), and since 1989: Netherlands: Aruba (Convention No. 138); Venezuela (Convention No. 138). Particular importance attaches to the first reports on the basis of which the Committee makes its initial assessment of the observance of ratified Conventions. The Committee therefore requests the governments concerned to make a special effort to supply these reports.

Replies to comments of the supervisory bodies

90. Governments are requested to reply in their reports to the observations and direct requests of the Committee, and the majority of governments have provided the replies requested. In accordance with the established practice, the International Labour Office has written to all the governments who failed to provide such replies, requesting them to supply the necessary information. Of the 40 governments contacted in this way, only nine have sent the information requested.

91. The Committee notes with concern that there are still a large number of cases in which there has been no reply to its comments. These cases can be grouped as follows:

(a) those where no report or reply has been received on any of the reports requested from the governments;

(b) those where the reports received contain no reply to most of the Committee's comments (observations and/or direct requests) and/or have failed to reply to letters sent by the ILO.

92. This represents a total of 299 cases, (Endnote 9) in comparison with 220 last year and 177 the previous year. The Committee is concerned by the very high number of these cases. It is bound to repeat the observations or direct requests already made on the Conventions in question.

93. The failure of the governments concerned to fulfil their obligations hinders the work of the Committee of Experts and that of the Conference Committee, and the Committee of Experts cannot over-emphasise the special importance of ensuring the dispatch of the reports and the replies to its comments on time.

Examination of reports

94. In examining the reports received on ratified Conventions and on Conventions that have been declared applicable to non-metropolitan territories, the Committee has followed its usual practice of assigning to each of its members the initial responsibility for a group of Conventions. Reports received early enough are sent to the members concerned in advance of the Committee's session. Each member submits his preliminary conclusions on the instruments for which he is responsible to all his colleagues for their examination. These conclusions are then presented to the Committee in plenary sitting by the author for discussion and approval.

Observations and direct requests

95. In the majority of cases, the Committee has found that no comment is called for regarding the way in which a ratified Convention has been implemented. In other cases, however, the Committee has found it necessary to draw the attention of the governments concerned to the need to take further action to give effect to certain provisions of Conventions or to supply additional information on given points. As in previous years, its comments have been drawn up in the form either of "observations", which are reproduced in the Report of the Committee, or of "direct requests", which are not published in the report, but are communicated directly to the governments concerned.

96. As previously, the Committee has indicated by footnotes the cases in which, because of the nature of the problems met in the application of the Conventions concerned, it has seemed appropriate to ask the governments to supply a detailed report earlier than would otherwise have been the case. Under the system of spacing out reports over a four-year period, which applies to most Conventions, such early reports have been requested after an interval of either one or two years, according to circumstances. In some instances, the Committee has also requested the government to supply full particulars to the Conference at its next session in June 1991.

97. The observations of the Committee appear in Part Two (sections I and II) of the present report, together with a list, under each Convention, of any direct requests. An index of all observations and direct requests - classified by country - will be found at the beginning of this report.

Cases of progress

98. In accordance with its usual practice, the Committee has drawn up a list of the cases in which it has been able to express its satisfaction at certain measures taken by governments to make the necessary changes in their law or practice following comments by the Committee on the degree of conformity between national law or practice and the provisions of a ratified Convention. Details concerning the cases in question are to be found in Part Two of this report and cover 48 instances in which measures of this kind have been taken in 35 States and 4 non-metropolitan territorites. The full list is as follows:

States Conventions Nos.

Algeria 87

Non-metropolitian territories

Denmark

Netherlands

United Kingdom

99. Thus, the total number of cases in which the Committee has been led to express its satisfaction with the progress achieved following comments made by it has risen to 1,898 since the Committee began listing them in its reports in 1964. In addition, there have been many cases in which the Committee has been able to note with interest various measures that have also been taken following its comments with a view to ensuring a fuller application of ratified Conventions. All these cases provide an indication of the efforts made by governments to ensure that their national law and practice are in conformity with the provisions of the ILO Conventions they have ratified.

100. These cases do not, however, as the Committee regularly points out, exhaust the instances in which Conventions and Recommendations have a measurable influence on the law and practice of member States. For example, the Committee again has noted a number of cases this year in which it is clear from the first report on the application of a Convention that new legislative or other measures were adopted shortly before or after ratification.

Practical application

101. As in previous years, the Committee has been concerned with assessing, on the basis of the information available, the extent to which the national legislation giving effect to ratified Conventions is applied in practice. A number of questions designed to elicit information on this point are included in the report forms approved by the Governing Body for the Conventions, and the replies of governments to these questions constitute an appreciable, though uneven, source of information on practical application available to the Committee. The Committee has also taken into account other authoritative sources of information. These consist of the annual reports of labour inspection services, statistical year-books published in the States or by the ILO, observations of employers' and workers' organisations, compilations of judicial or administrative decisions, reports on direct contacts, reports of technical co-operation projects and missions, and other official publications such as manuals, studies and economic and social development plans.

102. The Committee notes with regret that this year only some 49 per cent of the reports supplied on Conventions for which information on practical application was specifically requested contained such data. This percentage is significantly lower than that of 1990, which represented 56 per cent, and a good deal lower than the 63 per cent of 1989. The Committee cannot but be concerned by such a reduction in the amount of information received, without which it is unable to form a clear idea of the extent to which ratified Conventions are effectively applied. It therefore appeals to governments to make every effort to include the information requested in their future reports.

103. The following countries have provided information on practical application in more than half the reports concerned: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Barbados, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Cyprus, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Netherlands, New Zealand, Niger, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, Venezuela, Zambia.

104. The Committee wishes particularly to thank governments that have given information on practical application in their reports, as this information has greatly helped it in assessing more accurately the extent to which ratified Conventions are actually applied in these countries.

105. As in previous years, the Committee has addressed direct requests to certain countries which have not replied to the questions in the report forms on practical application. The Committee notes that again, this year, the majority of countries in question are developing countries and that certain of them have referred specifically to difficulties of a financial and/or administrative nature which are preventing them from compiling the statistical and other information requested. The Committee is of the opinion that these are also cases in which technical assistance from the International Labour Office could assist these countries in overcoming the difficulties in question.

106. The Committee also notes with interest the judicial and administrative decisions on questions of principle relating to the application of ratified Conventions to which certain countries have referred in their reports. Nevertheless, the Committee regrets that only 24 reports contain information of this kind and thereby throw additional light on the problems raised in these cases by the practical application of the Conventions in question.

107. The Committee wishes to recall that, under the provisions of many international labour Conventions, measures must be taken to ensure their observance by means of administrative, civil or penal sanctions. In the case of various other Conventions, similar measures may prove necessary in order to make their provisions effective and thus to meet the obligations assumed upon ratification under article 19 of the ILO Constitution. The Committee has noted that the legislative provisions governing these matters are often inadequate, because the sanctions laid down do not have a sufficiently dissuasive effect, in particular in matters of basic human rights, including cases of discrimination. The Committee therefore draws attention to the importance of establishing effective sanctions and of adapting monetary penalties, particularly in countries with high rates of inflation, in order to ensure that they exert an effective preventive influence against acts contrary to the guarantees laid down by international labour Conventions. The Committee requests governments to indicate in their reports the measures taken to examine the need to adapt monetary penalties from time to time in the light of inflation.

VI. SUBMISSION OF CONVENTIONS AND

Recommendations

108. In accordance with its terms of reference, the Committee this year examined the following information (Endnote 10) supplied by the governments of member States, pursuant to article 19 of the Constitution of the International Labour Organisation:

(a) information on the steps taken to submit to the competent authorities within the time-limit of 12 or 18 months, as provided for in the Constitution, the following instrument adopted at the 76th Session of the Conference (1989): the Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention (No. 169);

(b) additional information on the steps taken to submit to the competent authorities the instruments adopted by the Conference from its 31st (1948) to its 75th (Maritime) Session (1988) (Conventions Nos. 87 to 168 and Recommendations Nos. 83 to 176);

(c) replies to the observations and direct requests made by the Committee in 1990.

76th Session

109. The Committee notes with interest that the governments of the following member States have indicated that they have submitted to the authorities considered by them to be competent the instrument adopted by the Conference at its 76th Session: Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Byelorussian SSR, Canada, China, Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Denmark, Egypt, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Ghana, Iceland, Indonesia, Islamic Republic of Iran, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Mozambique, Myanmar, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Rwanda, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukrainian SSR, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, USSR.

31st to 75th Sessions

110. The Committee notes with interest that considerable efforts have been made by several countries to submit instruments adopted by the Conference since its 31st Session to the competent authorities, particularly in the following cases: Guinea (68th to 75th Sessions), Mauritania (68th to 76th Sessions), Mauritius (72nd to 76th Sessions and certain instruments from the 63rd and 67th Sessions), Netherlands (70th, 72nd and 75th Sessions and certain instruments from the 67th and 71st Sessions), San Marino (68th and 71st to 76th Sessions), Sao Tome and Principe (68th to 76th Sessions).

111. The table in Appendix I to section III of Part Two of the report of the Committee shows the position of each member State as it emerges from the information supplied by the governments, with regard to the discharge of the obligation to submit the Conventions and Recommendations adopted by the Conference to the competent authorities. Appendix II shows the overall position in this respect for the instruments adopted from the 31st to the 76th Sessions of the Conference.

General aspects

112. The Committee notes with concern that many countries are late - sometimes very late - in submitting to the competent authorities the instruments adopted by the Conference. In other cases, submission does not appear to have been accompanied by proposals on the action to be taken concerning the instruments being considered.

113. The Committee wishes to stress that the submission to the competent authorities of the instruments adopted by the Conference is a fundamental obligation which constitutes the indispensable first step in implementing international labour standards. In order that national authorities may be kept up to date on the standards adopted at the international level which may require action in each State so as to give effect to them at the national level, submission should be made as early as possible and in any case within the time-limits set by article 19 of the ILO Constitution. Governments, however, remain entirely free to propose any action which they may judge appropriate in respect of Conventions and Recommendations. The principal aim of the submission is to encourage a rapid and responsible decision by each country on the Conventions and Recommendations adopted by the Conference.

Comments of the Committee and replies from governments

114. In section III of Part Two of this report, the Committee makes individual observations on the points that it considers should be brought to the special attention of governments. In three of these observations the Committee has expressed its satisfaction at the measures taken in the following countries for the submission of instruments to the competent authorities: Mauritania, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe. In addition, requests with a view to obtaining supplementary information on other points have also been addressed directly to a number of countries, which are listed at the end of that section.

115. The Committee regrets to note that a number of governments have again failed to provide replies to its comments, even after reminders have been sent by the Office in accordance with the request made to it by the Committee. The Committee again expresses the hope that governments will endeavour in future to supply all the required information and documents.

116. The Committee wishes once more to point out the importance of the communication by governments of the information and documents called for in points II and III of the questionnaire in the Memorandum adopted by the Governing Body. Some countries do not communicate the information and documents in question. The Committee trusts that the governments concerned will take suitable measures to comply with the Memorandum on submission to the competent authorities.

Special problems

117. The Committee notes with regret that no information has been supplied by the following countries showing that the Conventions and Recommendations adopted by the Conference during at least the last seven sessions (69th to 76th) (Endnote 11) have in fact been submitted to the competent authorities: Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, Congo, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Haiti, Kenya, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Saint Lucia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Suriname. The increase in relation to the past two years in the number of countries that are lagging so far behind in this respect is one of the Committee's main concerns. Indeed, there is a danger that certain countries may find it difficult if not impossible to bring themselves up to date. What is more, neither the legislative authorities nor public opinion in these countries are regularly informed of the existence of new instruments as the Conference adopts them, which defeats the real purpose of the obligation to submit explained in paragraph 113 above. However, the Committee would like to point out once again that the obligation of submission does not imply that Governments must ratify the Conventions or accept the Recommendations in question. The Committee therefore expresses the firm hope that the governments concerned will promptly undertake to submit the instruments of the sessions indicated and that it will be able to note the progress made in this respect in its next report. The Committee again recalls that governments have the possibility of asking the International Labour Office for the technical assistance it is able to extend to them to attempt to solve this type of problem.

Submission of certain instruments to the appropriate authorities of the European Communities

118. During the past year, the Member States of the EEC have provided no further information on the consultations with the social partners that were undertaken a few years ago concerning the possible ratification of the Hours of Work and Rest Periods (Road Transport) Convention, 1979 (No. 153). It should be noted, however, that these States submitted this instrument, together with the corresponding Recommendation, years ago but made no proposals to the competent legislative authorities of their respective countries, thus discharging partly their obligation under article 19 of the ILO Constitution. The Committee recalls that it discussed this question at length in its General Report of 1990, paragraphs 113 to 115.

VII. INSTRUMENTS CHOSEN FOR REPORTS UNDER ARTICLE 19 OF THE CONSTITUTION

119. In accordance with the decision taken by the Governing Body, governments were requested to supply reports under article 19, paragraphs 5 and 7, of the ILO Constitution, on the Paid Educational Leave Convention, 1974 (No. 140), and Recommendation (No. 148), and the Human Resources Development Convention, 1975 (No. 142) and Recommendation (No. 150).

120. Of a total of 523 reports requested, 281 have been received. (Endnote 12) This represents 53.7 per cent of the reports requested.

121. More particularly, the Committee notes with regret that Angola, Cambodia, El Salvador, Fiji, Grenada, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Saint Lucia, Sierra Leone, the United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda and the Republic of Yemen have not, for the past five years, supplied any of the reports on unratified Conventions and Recommendations requested under article 19 of the ILO Constitution.

122. The Committee can only urge governments once again to provide the reports requested, so that its General Surveys can be as comprehensive as possible.

General Survey

123. Part Three of this Report (issued separately as Report III (Part 4B)) contains the General Survey of the Committee on questions covered by the instruments in question. This survey, in accordance with the practice followed in previous years, has been prepared on the basis of a preliminary examination by a working party comprising three members of the Committee, appointed by it.

124. Lastly, the Committee would like to express its appreciation of the invaluable assistance again rendered to it by the officials of the ILO, whose competence and devotion to duty make it possible for the Committee to accomplish its increasingly complex tasks in a limited period of time.

Geneva, 20 March 1991. (Signed) J.M. Ruda,

E. Razafindralambo,

Endnotes

Endnote 2

Endnote 3

Endnote 4

Endnote 5

Endnote 6

Endnote 7

Endnote 8

Endnote 9

Endnote 10

Endnote 11

Endnote 12