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TITLE: SAN MARINO HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES, 1993
DATE: JANUARY 31, 1994
AUTHOR: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
SAN MARINO
San Marino is a democratic multiparty republic with a
population of 24,000. Legislative authority is vested in a
unicameral parliament, the Great and General Council (GGC).
Executive authority is exercised by the 12-member Congress of
State (the cabinet), composed of 2 Captains Regent and 10
members chosen by the GGC. The Captains Regent are assisted by
three Secretaries of State (Foreign Affairs, Internal Affairs,
and Finance) and by several additional secretaries. The
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs has come to assume many
of the prerogatives of a Prime Minister.
Police forces are centralized in one organization, the Civil
Police, which has three branches, including an investigative
branch. Security and ceremonial representation are performed
by two military corps, the Gendarmerie and the "Guardie di
Rocca." These forces are controlled by and responsive to
elected government officials.
The principal economic activities are tourism, farming, and
light manufacturing. Tourism, a vital seasonal industry,
provides nearly half of the country's revenues. In addition to
income, corporate, and sales taxes, the Government derives most
of its revenue from the sale of coins and postage stamps to
collectors throughout the world and from payments of an annual
budget subsidy by the Italian Government under the terms of the
Republic's Basic Treaty with Italy.
Individual human rights are provided for in the Legal Code of
the Republic and respected in practice. San Marino's
legislature and government have demonstrated a strong interest
in and commitment to the protection of human rights, but some
laws, in particular with regard to transmission of citizenship,
discriminate against women.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
Freedom from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
Neither government forces nor opposition organizations engaged
in political or extrajudicial killings.
b. Disappearance
There were no cases of disappearance or abduction.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment
Torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or
punishment are prohibited by law, and there were no reports of
violations.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
There were no reports of arbitrary arrests, detentions, or
exile.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The rights of the accused are protected by procedural
safeguards which are guaranteed by law and observed in
practice. Judicial arrest warrants are required.
Detainees may not be held more than a few days without being
formally charged or released. Although there is no legally
prescribed limit on pretrial detention, San Marino's uncrowded
criminal dockets ensure that the courts hear most cases within
days or weeks. The procedural law grants trial judges
considerable discretion in this regard, but there were no
indications in 1993 of any abuse of this authority. The right
to a public trial and legal counsel is provided. The accused
may request that a court-appointed attorney be provided at no
cost. There is no incommunicado detention, and the accused may
not be compelled to answer questions or make statements without
having an attorney present.
Judicial authority is turned over in part to Italian
magistrates in both criminal and civil cases. Cases of minor
importance are handled by a local conciliation judge. Appeals
go, in the first instance, to an Italian judge residing in
Italy. The final court of review is the Council of Twelve, a
group of judges chosen for 6-year terms (four replaced every 2
years) from among the members of San Marino's Great and General
Council.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
Correspondence.
The concept of privacy of the home is respected by the
authorities. Judicial warrants are required for searches. The
privacy of correspondence, including telephonic communications,
is also protected.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
Freedom of speech and press is respected. There is no
government censorship. While there are no daily newspapers,
periodicals are published irregularly by the Government,
political parties, labor unions, and business associations. A
private press publishes a weekly bulletin with local news.
Such news is also available in local editions of several
Italian dailies.
Daily television news coverage of San Marino is broadcast by a
private Italian television station located in Italy. This
program is financed both through advertising and a contribution
by the San Marino Government. A recent Italy-San Marino
bilateral agreement established a new television station
(Telesanmarino) financed in equal shares by the San Marino
Government and Italy's public television network. This station
began operations in March. The television portion of San
Marino Radio-Television broadcasts 3 hours of fiction and
special programs a day, generally provided by the Italian
government-owned RAI-TV Corporation. The radio station
broadcasts news every hour, 12 hours a day, plus music and
locally produced programs.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
There is freedom of peaceful assembly. In order to hold a
rally or demonstration, a San Marino citizen must inform the
police. No permits are required unless parking areas are to be
used. Permits are routinely granted.
Freedom of association is respected, as is academic freedom.
c. Freedom of Religion
Freedom of religion is respected. The majority of the
population is Roman Catholic. Other denominations are entitled
to practice their faiths and to hold religious services.
Foreign clergy are free to perform their duties.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign
Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
Foreign travel, emigration and repatriation are freedoms
enjoyed by all citizens. San Marino is not a signatory to the
1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, although
officials on several occasions have expressed the country's
intention to accede to the Convention. Although San Marino
does not formally offer asylum to refugees, a few individuals
have been given de facto asylum by being permitted to reside
and work there. Refugees resettled in San Marino and other
foreigners are eligible to apply for citizenship only after 30
years of residence.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens
to Change Their Government
Legislative authority is vested in a unicameral parliament, the
Great and General Council (GGC), consisting of 60 members who
normally are elected to serve 5-year terms. The Council is
also the body that would consider any basic changes to the
system of government. Any group of 150 San Marinese citizens
may petition the GGC to propose a new law. In the week
following installation of the Captains Regent, any San Marinese
citizen may approach the Captains Regent at a special open
forum to request the examination of any subject whatsoever.
The Captains Regent are obliged by centuries-old custom to take
up that subject in the GGC during their term in office.
Executive authority is exercised by the 12-member Congress of
State (the cabinet), composed of 2 Captains Regent and 10
members chosen by the GGC. The Captains Regent are elected by
the Council from among its members for 6-month terms. Their
functions are largely honorary, although they also preside over
meetings of the Council and the Congress and are empowered to
propose legislation and to represent San Marino in its foreign
relations. The Captains Regent are assisted by three
Secretaries of State (Foreign Affairs, Internal Affairs, and
Finance) and by several additional secretaries entrusted with
specific portfolios.
The Congress of State is composed of executives who head the
various administrative departments of the Government. These
posts are divided among the parties that form the coalition
government. The Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs has
come to assume many of the prerogatives of a prime minister.
Membership in the GGC is based on proportional representation
and is selected from nominee lists submitted by the political
parties. Voting is open to all citizens 18 years of age or
older. Women gained the right to vote in the early 1960's,
voting in national elections for the first time in 1964.
Elections in San Marino are free and fair. Elections are held
every 5 years unless the GGC votes to dissolve itself and hold
early elections. Six parties are represented in the
parliament. General elections, held in May, confirmed the
Christian Democratic Party (DCS) and the Socialist Party (PSS)
coalition which has governed since March 1992. As in recent
years, the Government offered to pay 75 percent of the travel
costs for approximately 6,000 citizens living abroad to return
to San Marino to vote in the election. There have been no
impediments to women participating in government or politics
since the passage of a 1973 law eliminating all restrictions.
In 1974 the first woman was elected to the GGC. Since then,
women have served in the Council as Secretary of State for
Internal Affairs and as Captain Regent. Women's branches of
the political parties have all been integrated into the
mainstream party organizations, and women hold important
positions in the various parties.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
of Human Rights
There are no domestic human rights organizations, although
there are no government impediments to the formation of such
organizations. The Government has declared itself open to
investigations of alleged abuses by outsiders, but there have
been no known requests of such a nature from international
organizations.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
Disability, Language or Social Status
Discrimination based on race, sex, religion, disability,
language, or social status is prohibited by the law and
generally not practiced, but some vestiges of legal and
societal discrimination against women remain.
Women
Several laws provide specifically for equality of women and
equal pay. In practice, there is no discrimination in pay or
working conditions. All careers, including military and police
as well as the highest public offices, are open to women. A
San Marinese woman who marries a foreigner may not transmit
citizenship to her husband or children, although a San Marinese
man who marries a foreigner may transmit citizenship to both
wife and children.
Some aspects of social and traditional discrimination against
women remain. However, women recently have entered in
significant numbers into fields previously dominated by men,
including law and medicine. At present, there are no reports
of discrimination cases brought to court by San Marinese women.
Violence against women is unusual, and women are protected by
law in these cases. After the passage of favorable laws by the
GGC in the 1970's and 1980's, a National Commission on Women's
Rights in the Law was disbanded as it was believed there was no
further need for it.
Children
An October 1992 law reforming the judicial system provided for
the creation of a separate juvenile court, which was being
organized in 1993.
A special service to fight child abuse, which is part of the
state medicare system, has been active since 1974. The service
provides for foster care of children separated from their
families by the local tribunal. The service has had a total of
14 cases since 1982. The San Marino budget devoted over 1
percent of its 1994 budget to this program.
People With Disabilities
In 1990 the Parliament issued a general law to safeguard the
rights and promote the social integration of disabled people,
requiring Parliament to prepare legislation on a list of
specific issues. In May 1991, the GGC passed legislation
regulating and encouraging the hiring of people with
disabilities. A bill passed in September 1992 established a
2-year period to review architectural barriers to the
handicapped in existing buildings and required that all new
buildings have no such barriers.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
By law, all workers in San Marino (except the military but
including police forces) are free to form and join unions.
There are two trade union federations: the Democratic
Federation of San Marinese Workers (affiliated with the
International Confederation of Free Trade Unions), which has
about 2,500 workers, and the General Federation of Labor with
about 2,400 workers. Union members represent approximately 50
percent of the country's work force (10,000 San Marinese, or
12,000 including Italian workers).
Trade unions are independent from the government. Formally,
they are also independent from political parties. However,
political parties have close ties with and exercise strong
influence on trade unions.
Except for the military establishment, all categories of
workers have the right to strike, including the civil police.
No strikes have occurred in at least the last 4 years.
Unions may freely join international labor federations. Since
1961 trade unions have been legally recognized by a law which
sets the minimum conditions (for example, the minimum number of
members and affiliated labor federations) for their
establishment.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
Collective bargaining is recognized and protected by law. The
law prohibits antiunion discrimination by employers, and
effective mechanisms exist (including reinstatement of workers
fired for union activities) to resolve complaints. Collective
bargaining is freely practiced throughout the country--the
collective bargaining agreements are published in the
Government's bulletin and have the force of law. Negotiations
are freely conducted, and the presence of government officials
(usually from the Labor and Industry Departments) is often
requested by the unions and the employers' association. For
the last several years, all complaints have been resolved
amicably by a "conciliatory committee" composed of judges and
government officials.
There are no export processing zones.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
Forced or compulsory labor is prohibited by law and does not
exist in practice.
d. Minimum Age for Employment of Children
The minimum working age of 16 years is strictly enforced by the
Ministry of Labor and Cooperation, and there are no exceptions.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
The legal minimum wage assures a decent living for a worker and
his or her family. In November 1993 the minimum wage was
approximately $1,000 (1,637,868 lire) per month. According to
trade unions, wages are generally higher than the minimum wage.
The legal workweek in the public administration is 36 hours.
In industry and private business, it is 37 1/2 hours. At least
24 hours a week are dedicated to rest for all categories of
workers. Trade unions report no problems on this issue.
According to trade unions, San Marino has had advanced
legislation on health and safety standards since 1987.
However, enforcement to date has been weak, due to employer
resistance in some industries. According to labor unions,
health and safety standards are often not fully implemented in
the construction sector. For practical reasons and to reduce
costs, employers and workers alike do not always follow all
regulations. In the last national labor contract, unions
obtained 2 hours of paid time for all constructions workers to
be given instruction and training concerning safety standards.
The judicial system is responsible for enforcement.
[end of document]
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