Introduction

1. The Committee on Freedom of Association, set up by the Governing Body at its 117th Session (November 1951), met at the International Labour Office, Geneva, on 4, 5 and 17 March 1999 under the chairmanship of Professor Max Rood.

2. The Committee had before it two complaints of violations of freedom of association in Nigeria, presented by a number of trade union organizations (Cases Nos. 1793 and 1935), as well as a report of the Officers of the Governing Body entitled "Observance by Nigeria of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), and the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98): Report on the direct contacts mission to Nigeria (17-21 August 1998)" pursuant to its decisions to institute, by its own motion, the procedure provided for in article 26(4) of the ILO Constitution and to proceed to appoint a commission of inquiry (271st Session, March 1998) and to suspend the work of the commission to allow a direct contacts mission to take place in the country (272nd Session, June 1998).

3. In accordance with the decision adopted by the Governing Body at its 273rd Session (November 1998), the Committee submits, for the Governing Body's approval, a report on the pending cases.