He said that the forum was a good opportunity for dialogue and co-operation to enhance the basic principles and rights of workers and to establish international co-operation enforce justice and respect of all human rights. Al Bakri expressed his appreciation for the valuable efforts made by the ILO Director-General in preparing the world report entitled “Price of Forced Labour” which has been devoted this year to abolition of forced labour.
He said that the report highlighted the international community’s efforts to lay down principles of social justice as per international labour standards. “The GCC states have long been among the first to enforce international laws and they supported the ILO’s endeavours to rally international opinion to achieve a fair and just globalisation that gives priority to human beings and secure their rights,” he said.
“Due to the nature of major economic and social transformations and comprehensive development being witnessed by the GCC communities, coupled with envisaged population growth, the GCC countries have taken precautions to tackle change using objective means as stressed in the global report on the GCC states’ response and good co-operation with the ILO. The GCC promoted the basic rights of workers and protected them against forced labour and injustice,” he added.
Al Bakri said: “All GCC states have ratified Convention No 29 on Abolition of All Types of Forced Labour, and Convention No 105 on Abolition of Forced Labour. The GCC legislations and systems were consistent with the essence and standards of the international labour which explicitly bans forced labour and fixed working and rest hours, vacations and regularised over time”.
He added that some of the GCC states have joined the UN Convention Against Transnational Organised Crime and Palermo Protocol on Prevention, Suppressing and Punishing Trafficking in Persons, Women and Children, in particular. “Our countries are currently witnessing a number of important initiatives and establishing national control mechanisms to prevent human trafficking and promote the role of civic society,” he said.
“Civic society organisations, human rights societies and committees, and labour federations have acted as one front to stop misusing of labour amd incriminate human trafficking and all forced labour,” he noted. The GCC had adopted a model law on protecting the rights of housemaids, protecting expat labour force, establishing national offices for combating human trafficking and offices for the welfare of labourers who were subjected to forced labour. Al Bakri said that the GCC is looking forward to establish a better world which is obliged to respecting standards and maintaining human dignity for a just, peaceful and prosperous future for all peoples.
