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Title: Madagascar Human Rights Practices, 1995
Author: U.S. Department of State
Date: March 1996
MADAGASCAR
Madagascar's transition from the 16-year authoritarian Socialist rule of
Didier Ratsiraka officially ended in 1993 with the fair election of
Albert Zafy as President and the selection of Francisque Ravony as Prime
Minister by the National Assembly. Under the 1992 Constitution, power
is divided between the President, the Prime Minister and his Government,
and the National Assembly. A number of institutions provided by the new
Constitution, including an upper house (Senate) of the National Assembly
had not been established by year's end. However, communal elections,
which are a necessary first step toward the creation of the Senate, took
place on November 5. Departmental and regional elections, which must
also precede a senate election, are scheduled to take place in 1996,
although no date had yet been set.
Relations between the President and the Prime Minister deteriorated amid
charges of corruption and mismanagement of the economy, forcing a
realignment of parties in the National Assembly and a national
referendum--called by President Zafy--to amend the Constitution.
Malagasy voters strongly supported increased presidential powers during
the September 17 referendum, which was conducted in a free and fair
manner. The Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers resigned in
October, opening the way for President Zafy to name Emmanuel
Rakotovahiny as Prime Minister, along with a new cabinet.
In August the Government increased civilian control over the military
through the passage of a new defense law. The law established a new
cabinet-level policy body, the High Council of Defense, chaired by the
President, and an Interministerial Defense Committee, chaired by the
Prime Minister, to carry out the decisions of the High Council. After
allowing the forces to shrink gradually, the Government has stabilized
the overall size of the military at about 21,000 (13,000 military, 8,000
gendarmes). There were occasional reports that police committed human
rights abuses and many reports of abuses by village-level law
enforcement groups.
The Government has established targets for improved economic management,
reduced government expenditures, and increased revenues. Although some
of these targets were met, the country's overall economic performance
was mixed. Living standards remained extremely low, and purchasing
power continued to erode. Per capita gross domestic product was
estimated at $230 for 1994. In early 1995, inflation was progressing at
an annual rate of 60 percent, but with stricter economic management,
including tighter control over the money supply, the inflation rate
declined considerably by the end of the year. The economy remains
highly dependent on agriculture. Primary commodities such as shrimp,
vanilla, and coffee did relatively well, and rice production, the major
staple, increased over previous years. Tourism also increased as did
manufacturing in the export processing zones. The smuggling of vanilla,
gold, precious stones, and cattle continued to be a major concern as did
the rise in criminal activity. Unemployment and underemployment also
remained serious problems, especially among those under 25, who comprise
about 60 percent of the population.
The human rights situation remained the same. There was a notable
absence of political violence, despite demonstrations and heated
political rivalry between supporters of the President and then Prime
Minister Ravony. However, there continued to be human rights abuses in
the law enforcement and judicial systems. There were occasional reports
of police brutality against suspects and detainees as well as instances
of arbitrary arrest and detention. Prison conditions are harsh and life
threatening, and in some prisons women may experience physical abuse,
including rape. The authorities took no actions to relieve the
overburdened court system. As a result, suspects continued to be
incarcerated for lengthy pretrial periods, often exceeding the maximum
penalty for the alleged offense. A magistrates' strike over judicial
independence exacerbated this situation. Traditional local law
enforcement groups ("dina") carried out their own brand of summary
justice. Women continued to face societal discrimination.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
Freedom from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
There were no known political killings by government forces. However,
harsh prison conditions resulted in an unknown number of deaths (see
Section 1.c.). Also, to combat rising crime village-level dina
continued to mete out justice, including summary executions (see Section
l.e.). In addition, citizen mobs took summary action against suspected
thieves in Antananarivo and elsewhere, resulting in severe injury or
death to the suspects.
The official investigation into the 1994 beating death of radio
journalist Victor Randrianirina, allegedly for his reporting on sapphire
smuggling in Madagascar, remained open, but the authorities made no
arrests and issued no statements.
Similarly, despite commitments by the Government that those responsible
for 1991-93 incidents, in which security forces killed or injured
unarmed civilians, would be brought to trial, there was visible progress
in only one case. The authorities tried in a civilian court the 14
soldiers arrested in April 1993 for alleged involvement in politically
motivated violence in Antsiranana; several received prison sentences of
varying length while others were acquitted. The Government has not
reported on or made arrests in a case involving the deaths of more than
30 demonstrators who were killed by then president Ratsiraka's guards at
the Iavoloha palace on August 10, 1991. A formal commission named in
1994 to investigate this incident did not hold hearings during the year.
Nor was progress made in the investigation of the March 31, 1992,
incident in which soldiers killed six pro-Ratsiraka supporters at the
National Forum (Constitutional Convention).
b. Disappearance
There were no permanent disappearances and no acknowledged cases of
unsolved abductions or disappearances.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment
The Constitution provides for the inviolability of the person. However,
there were occasional reports of police or other forces mistreating
prisoners or detainees. There were also isolated instances of dina-
sponsored trials in which torture was used to solicit confessions from
criminal suspects.
Prison conditions are harsh and life threatening; government officials
acknowledge that a serious situation exists. The diet provided is
inadequate, and family members must provide or augment inmates' daily
food rations. Prisoners without relatives nearby sometimes go for days
without food. Each prisoner has on average less than 1 square meter of
space. The prison population, estimated at 22,000, suffer a wide range
of medical problems that are not routinely treated, including
malnutrition, infections, malaria, and tuberculosis. These conditions
have resulted in an unknown number of deaths.
Women in prison suffer abuses, as do the children who are sometimes
confined with them. Gender segregation is not absolute, and there were
some reported cases of rape. The Government permits prison visits by
the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), religious and
charitable organizations, and a Malagasy legal association investigating
abuses of pretrial detention. As a result of the access to prisons
afforded to the media, a photographic exhibition on prison conditions
was held.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
The Constitution provides for due process for accused persons, but in
practice the authorities do not always respect these rights, frequently
failing to observe legal safeguards against arbitrary arrest and
detention. In particular, excessive pretrial detention of the accused
results in the denial of due process.
According to the law, a criminal suspect must be charged, bound over, or
released within 3 days after arrest. An arrest warrant may be obtained
but is not always required. According to the Penal Code, defendants in
ordinary criminal cases have the right to be informed of the charges
against them, must be charged formally within the specified time frame,
and must be allowed access to an attorney. Court appointed counsel is
provided for indigents accused of crimes which carry a minimum 5-year
jail sentence.
Bail may be requested by the accused or by his attorney immediately
after arrest, after being formally charged, or during the appeal
process, but it is rarely granted at any stage for violent crimes.
Approximately 70 percent of the estimated 22,000 prisoners were in
pretrial detention. Despite existing legal protections, the average
pretrial detention time often exceeds 1 year, and 3 or 4 years of
detention is common, even for crimes for which the maximum penalty may
be 2 years or less. Prisoners may wait years in prison only to be found
not guilty. A Catholic nongovernmental organization (NGO), the
Aumonerie Catholique, in conjunction with a lawyers association,
intervened on behalf of a number of detainees and won release for 36
persons.
Although the law allows prisoners to sue the Government for damages in
unlawful detention, it virtually never occurs. By law, persons
suspected of activity against the State may be detained incommunicado
for 15 days, subject to indefinite extension if considered necessary by
the Government; however, this provision is used infrequently.
The Government does not use forced exile as a means of political
control.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The 1992 Constitution provides for an independent judiciary; however,
implementing legislation to define the rights and responsibilities of
the judiciary had not been passed by year's end, due in part to
President Zafy's narrow interpretation of the degree of autonomy for the
magistracy called for in the Constitution. This controversy led to an
effective nationwide magistrates strike starting in January, with the
magistrates subsequently providing only the "minimum service" necessary
to ensure public security. In February the President convoked an
extraconstitutional "National Forum," to debate legal reform. Since the
magistrates refused to participate, the Forum was unable to reach
consensus, although it did press the National Assembly to vote against
greater powers for the judiciary. The strike continued until August.
Meanwhile, the National Assembly reviewed draft legislation to define
better the responsibilities and powers of the magistracy but deferred
action until 1996. Although no precise statistics are available, the
magistrates' strike contributed to an increased backlog of cases in an
already overcrowded docket.
The judiciary has three levels of courts: lower courts for civil and
criminal cases carrying limited fines and sentences; the Court of
Appeals, which includes a criminal court for cases carrying sentences of
5 years or more; and the Supreme Court. The judiciary also has special
courts designed to handle specific kinds of cases (e.g., cattle
rustling) under the jurisdiction of the higher courts. The
Constitutional High Court is a separate and autonomous body which
reviews laws, decrees, and ordinances, and certifies election results.
In the absence of reform, the judiciary remained under the aegis of the
Ministry of Justice. The lack of internal controls and relatively low
salaries for magistrates encourage corruption, although the Government
began to address the problem by revising outdated and unevenly
apportioned housing allowances. Trials are public, and defendants have
the right to an attorney, to be present at the trial, to confront
witnesses, and to present evidence. Defendants enjoy a presumption of
innocence under the Penal Code.
The right of traditional institutions at the village level to take
measures to protect property and public order is specified in the 1992
Constitution, as well as in earlier laws. The traditional dina handle
civil matters within and between villages and also operate in some urban
areas. In practice, the dina are increasingly being used in criminal
cases because of rising crime, the physical isolation of many rural
areas, and practical inadequacies of the formal police and judicial
systems. The Government began an effort in late 1995 to combat crime
and insecurity in isolated rural regions by reinforcing the law
enforcement role of the army and the gendarmerie.
Dina punishments can be severe, in some cases including capital
punishment. A study being prepared by a Malagasy Lawyers Association
for publication in 1996 found more than a dozen instances of execution
following dina trials, usually for cattle theft.
In November 1994, the National Assembly formally recognized the role of
the dina in reducing crime and insecurity; it passed legislation giving
dina verdicts the same weight as judgments handed down by lower courts
and increasing fines and prison sentences to those refusing to abide by
dina decisions. However, this legislation remained under review by the
Constitutional Court at year's end and had not yet entered into force.
Decisions by dina are not subject to codified due-process protections,
but, in some instances, they can be challenged at the appeals court
level. Some cases have also been referred to the attention of the
Office of the Mediator (ombudsman), which investigates and may seek
redress from formal judicial authorities.
Military courts have some jurisdiction over cases involving national
security, such as acts constituting a threat to the nation and its
political leaders, invasion by foreign forces, and riots that could lead
to overthrow of the Government. Military courts, like civilian courts,
provide for a process to reexamine interpretations of the law rather
than the facts of the case. They are presided over by a civilian
magistrate who is joined on the bench by military officers.
There were no reports of political prisoners. However, there are
approximately 25 self-proclaimed political prisoners, all civilians, who
were convicted for their roles in the politically motivated violence in
Antsiranana in late 1992 and early 1993.
f. Arbitrary interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
Correspondence
The home is inviolable by tradition and law, and the State does not
intervene in the private lives of the people. The law requires
judicially issued warrants to search houses, but there were reportedly
some instances of search without proper warrants. One newsmagazine
reported that the Government had increased the monitoring of mail and
correspondence.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
The Constitution provides for freedom of expression, communication, and
press and forbids press censorship. The Government generally respected
these provisions in practice. People generally spoke freely, and debate
in the National Assembly was open and lively. The print media openly
criticized both the Government and the opposition. Opposition groups,
trade unions, professional associations, and private citizens have
regular access to the press.
Some journalists, however, although in decreasing numbers, continue to
practice self-censorship fearing reprisals from the Government or others
for aggressive investigative reporting. Journalists rarely cite the
names of sources, in part because Malagasy culture aspires to be
nonconfrontational, and in part because journalists do not believe they
can count on effective backing by their editors and publishers in case
of a lawsuit. There is also a persistent reluctance by government
officials and others to share information with the press.
State-owned radio and television are the most important means of
reaching the public and continued to feature discussion programs and
debates on topics of public policy, although it rarely included
editorial comment. Malagasy television broadcasts network news from
France via satellite each evening. There is one private television
station in the capital, and licenses have been granted for two others.
English and French language television stations are available via cable
in the capital or satellite dish throughout the country. Along with
state radio, there are seven private radio stations in the capital area
and a number of others in provincial cities which cover political
subjects and are sometimes critical of the Government.
Although a law dating from the previous Republic requires Ministry of
Interior approval for films and videotapes shown in public, in practice
this regulation is rarely enforced.
There were no reports of threats to academic freedom.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The Constitution provides for these freedoms, but there are some legal
restrictions. Municipal permits, usually granted, are required before
holding public meetings but may be denied if government officials
believe that the meeting poses a threat to the State, endangers national
security, or significantly encumbers public thoroughfares. Officially
established security zones are off-limits to demonstrators. The
proliferation of political and nongovernmental organizations continued
and is indicative of recent relaxations on free association rights.
There are more than 60 political parties and some 900 NGO's.
c. Freedom of Religion
The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the Government
respects this right in practice. Missionaries and clergy are permitted
to operate freely.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign
Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
The Constitution provides for freedom of movement, and the Government
places no formal restrictions on travel within or outside the country.
However, domestic security concerns do effectively restrict travel in
some places, especially at night. Malagasy and foreign residents
require exit visas issued by the Ministry of Interior, but these visas
are almost never refused unless the person is involved in legal
proceedings.
The Government generally cooperates closely with the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees in processing a small number of refugees or
asylum seekers. However, the Government has failed to resolve the
status of approximately 127 Ethiopian asylum seekers, who have been in
Madagascar for several years. There are several refugees from Zaire and
Sudan. There were no reports of forced expulsion of those having a
valid claim to refugee status.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to
Change Their Government
Citizens have this right. In 1993 Madagascar concluded more than 2
years of political transition which were initiated by largely peaceful
mass demonstrations against the previous regime of Didier Ratsiraka in
1991. Albert Zafy was elected to a 5-year term in 1992, and 138 members
of the National Assembly were chosen for 4-year terms in 1993 in
generally free and fair elections, by direct universal suffrage and
secret ballot.
Under the Constitution, the President has primary responsibility for
national defense and foreign policy while the Prime Minister is Head of
Government and has primary responsibility for domestic policy. During
the year political tensions between the President and the Prime Minister
continued; in July the President's supporters again brought
unsuccessfully a motion of censure against the Prime Minister in the
National Assembly, which, if the motion had passed, would have required
him to resign. In turn, some National Assembly supporters of the Prime
Minister threatened, but did not carry out, impeachment proceedings
against the President.
As a result of this political dispute, the President called a national
referendum for September 17, to empower him to name the Prime Minister
and the Council of Ministers directly. The President's proposal won 62
percent of the vote, although there was a high rate of abstention.
Prime Minister Ravony resigned in October after the official results
were published. President Zafy selected Emmanuel Rakotovahiny from
among candidates proposed by each bloc in the National Assembly and
subsequently approved the new Council of Ministers named by the new
Prime Minister.
The Constitution calls for the Prime Minister to be appointed every 4
years when a new National Assembly is elected, or upon vacancy. The
Constitution gives the President, acting in conjunction with the Council
of Ministers, the right to dissolve the National Assembly if there have
been two governmental crises in the previous 18 months. The High
Constitutional Court must rule on what constitutes a crisis. The Prime
Minister is required to submit his resignation (as must the Cabinet) if
a motion of censure is passed by a two-thirds majority of the National
Assembly.
The creation of the Senate moved forward with the holding of communal
elections on November 5. Departmental and regional elections, which
must also precede a senate election, are scheduled to take place in
1996, although no date had been set by year's end.
There are no legal restrictions against women participating in politics,
but in practice men dominate the political process. Only one
ministerial position was held by a woman in the second and third Ravony
cabinets, and women hold only 6 percent of the legislative seats.
However, in the judiciary women have significantly higher
representation.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
of Human Rights
By law, human rights groups are considered to be political groups and
must register with the Government. Some nongovernmental human rights
groups exist and are increasingly active, for example in such issues as
defending press freedoms. They have been joined by civic education
organizations that have much the same agenda.
The Constitution provides for the establishment of an independent
organization charged with promoting and protecting human rights. In
1994 the National Assembly designated the Office of the Mediator
(ombudsman) to assume that constitutional role. This action reversed an
earlier decision by the Ravony government to abolish the mediator on the
grounds that it was redundant given the President's constitutional role
as the public arbiter in matters of government administration. The
power of the Office of the Mediator rests on moral suasion. The Office
of the Mediator published annual reports in 1994 and 1995 on its
activities and has produced and distributed a brochure to inform the
public of its role.
While slow to carry out investigations of major cases of violence,
notably the August 1991 killings at Iavoloha palace, the Government did
not penalize or repress anyone for criticizing its human rights record
(see Section l.a.).
The Government is open to visits by international human rights groups
and to the presence of domestic and international election observers,
although no foreign groups applied to observe the referendum. United
Nations organizations, including the International Labor Organization
(ILO), operated freely and extensively in Madagascar.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
Disability, Language, or Social Status
The Constitution prohibits all forms of discrimination and groups that
advocate ethnic or religious segregation. However, there are no
specific government programs to enforce antidiscrimination provisions.
Women
According to various sources, including magistrates, journalists, and
women doctors, violence against women is not widespread. In the rare
cases where physical abuse is detected, police and legal authorities do
intervene, although there is no law dealing specifically with violence
against women, except in cases of rape. Spouses can be tried for
nonrape abuses, generally under civil law. Some women prisoners have
been victims of rape.
Despite constitutional prohibitions, there is societal discrimination
against women, although less so in urban areas where women have an
important, if secondary, role in the business and economic life of the
country, with many of them managing or owning businesses or filling
management positions in state industries. However, women in rural areas
face greater hardship, bearing the responsibilities of raising a family
while also engaging in farm labor or other subsistence activities.
Under a 1990 conjugal law, wives have an equal say in choosing where a
married couple will reside, and they receive generally equitable
distribution of marital property in instances of divorce. Widows
inherit one-half of joint marital wealth. In practice, some parts of
the island still observe a tradition known as "the customary third"
whereby the wife has a right to only a third of a couple's joint
holdings. However, a widow receives a pension, and a widower does not.
Children
While official expenditures on children's welfare are low, the
Government has decided to maintain spending by the Ministries of Health
and Education at current levels despite an overall climate of increasing
budget austerity. These levels are insufficient, however, to halt the
decline of public services in the high-inflation environment. There is
no pattern of official or societal abuse against children.
People With Disabilities
Physically disabled people are not subject to discrimination in
education and in the provision of other state services, but neither are
they the beneficiaries of special enabling or protecting legislation.
The Government has not enacted legislation or otherwise provided for
accessibility to buildings and transportation for the disabled.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
Madagascar is inhabited by over 12 million people. The Malagasy are of
mixed Malayo-Polynesian and African origins and are made up of 18
distinct groups based on regional and ancestral affiliation. Although
there are some linguistic differences among them, nearly all speak
Malagasy, which is of Malayo-Polynesian origin. None of these groups
constitutes a majority of the population.
Long-term historical processes of military conquest, ethnic domination,
and political consolidation, however, have traditionally raised the
political and economic status of highland ethnic groups of Asian origin
over that of coastal groups of more African descent. The centralized
planned economy of the previous regime reinforced the concentration of
economic and political power in the highland, capital area. This
policies have contributed to ethnic tensions between the two groups.
Ethnic or regional solidarity may also be a determining factor in hiring
practices.
An Indo-Pakistani community of about 20,000, primarily engaged in
commerce, has been in Madagascar since the early part of this century.
Few, however, have been able to obtain Malagasy citizenship, since it is
customarily bestowed matrilineally through native Malagasy women. The
Indo-Pakistanis are frequent targets of mistrust and criticism, and
their shops have often been targets of violent attack during civil
disturbances. There were several reported instances of wealthy Indo-
Pakistani businessmen or their family members being kidnapped and held
for ransom.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
Citizens in both the public and private sectors have the right by law
(the 1995 Labor Code--passed by the National Assembly in 1994, approved
by the High Constitutional Court in 1995--and the 1992 Constitution) and
in practice to establish and join labor unions of their own choosing
without prior authorization. However, essential service workers,
including police and military, may not form unions. Unions are required
to register with the Government, and registration is routinely granted.
About 80 percent of the labor force of 5 million is agrarian. Unionized
labor accounts for only about 5 percent of wage labor.
There are a number of trade union federations, and many are affiliated
with political parties. In practice, however, formal public and private
sector unions have not played a major role politically or economically
in recent years. The Government exercised very limited control over
organized labor.
The new 1995 Labor Code and the new Constitution provide for the right
to strike, including in export processing ("free trade") zones. Those
groups providing essential services--police, fire fighters, hospital
workers--have only a limited right to strike. Labor unions fear that
the 1995 Code could have the practical effect of discouraging strikes
due to the mandatory requirement to first exhaust conciliation,
mediation, and arbitration procedures. However, the new law was not
used in 1995 as a significant deterrent to legally called strikes.
In addition to the magistrates' strike (see Section 1.e.), there were
strikes by the employees of the Ministry of Higher Education, two banks,
an insurance company, and several state-owned organizations, and by
university professors. There were also brief work stoppages (usually
not exceeding 2 days) in several ministries, by staff members in the
National Assembly, and in hospitals in the capital and elsewhere. For
example, there was a work stoppage and blockade in the central market
area of the capital in response to police efforts to enforce licensing
and sanitary laws. Laws and regulations prohibit retribution against
strikers who adhere to legal procedures governing strikes. In 1995 a
court ruled in favor of employees of one firm who alleged that they had
been discharged in retribution for a legal strike.
Unions may and do freely affiliate with and participate in international
bodies and may form federations or confederations.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
Both the Labor Code and the Constitution provide for the right to
bargain collectively. The Code states that collective bargaining may be
undertaken between management and labor at either party's behest.
Collective bargaining agreements exist but are not common, and the
Government is often involved in the bargaining process, in part because
of the large number of unionized employees in the public sector. The
minimum wage is set by the Government. Other wages are set by employers
with individual employees, sometimes below the minimum wage. When there
is a failure to reach agreement, the Ministry of Labor convenes a
committee of employment inspectors who attempt to resolve the matter.
If this process fails, the committee refers the matter to the chairman
of the Court of Appeals for final arbitration. No such cases reached
the Court of Appeals in 1995.
The Labor Code prohibits discrimination by employers against organizers,
union members, and unions. In the case of antiunion activity, the union
or its members may file a petition in civil court challenging the
employer. Labor laws apply uniformly throughout the country, including
in free trade zones. However, the Government has difficulty enforcing
labor laws and regulations due to lack of basic resources. Ministry of
Labor inspectors, who number only 27, visit industrial work sites with
some regularity but mostly in the capital region.
There are several export processing zones (EPZ's). Firms in the EPZ's
are required to follow all existing labor laws, including minimum wage
laws, for their industry.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
Forced labor is explicitly prohibited by the Labor Code and is not
practiced.
d. Minimum Age for Employment of Children
The Labor Code describes a child as any person under the age of 18. The
legal minimum age for employment is 14 years, and the use of child labor
is prohibited at sites where there is apparent and imminent danger. The
Government tries to enforce these child labor laws in the small formal
employment sector through inspectors from the Ministry of Labor and
Social Security. However, in the large subsistence sector, many young
children work with their parents on family farms at much earlier ages.
Similarly, in the urban areas many children earn money by hawking
parking spaces, newspapers or other wares, and by carrying water and
begging.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
The Labor Code and its implementing legislation prescribe the working
conditions and wage scales for employees, which are enforced by the
Ministry of Labor and Social Security. The law distinguishes between
agricultural and nonagricultural work.
There are several administratively determined minimum wage rates in
Madagascar, depending upon skill levels, starting at $25 (110,550
Malagasy francs) a month for unskilled workers. This wage is inadequate
to ensure a decent standard of living for a worker and family, and
workers must supplement their incomes through subsistence agriculture,
petty trade, or reliance on the extended family structure. Given
insufficient enforcement measures, official wage rates are sometimes
ignored as high unemployment and extreme poverty lead workers to accept
salaries below the legal minimum.
There is a 40-hour workweek in nonagricultural and service industries
and a 42 1/2-hour workweek in agricultural industries. There are also
provisions for holiday pay, sick and maternity leave, and insurance.
The Labor Code sets rules and standards concerning building and work
safety, machinery, weight-lifting limits, and sanitation. Ministry of
Civil Service, Administrative Reform and Labor inspectors visit
industrial work sites and report on violations of labor code rules.
However, they are usually prevented from traveling regularly beyond the
capital region by insufficient resources. If cited violations are not
remedied within the time allowed, the violators may be legally charged
and subject to penalties. Nevertheless, in some sectors safety measures
are lacking due to the expense of even minimal protective clothing and
other personal security apparatus. To date, there have been no
published reports on occupational health hazards and accidents, although
there is clear evidence that these hazards exist.
There is no explicit right allowing workers to remove themselves from
dangerous work without jeopardizing their continued employment. The ILO
has cited the Government within the past year for failure to observe ILO
conventions and standards governing workplace safety and weight limits.
(###)
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