Country Rating: 3

  • Regular violation of rights

  • Government and/or companies are regularly interfering in collective labour rights or are failling to fully guarantee important aspects of these rights. There are deficiencies in laws and/or certain practices which make frequent violations possible.

Arrests and harassement of members of a coalition of teachers' union: In April 2013, Daniel Ngami, co-chairman of the coalition called CPRE (Concertation pour la Revalorisation de la Profession d'Enseignant / Coalition for improving the teaching profession), was arrested by National Security office agents on 1st of April and Luc Mba Monga, also a CPRE member, was arrested the following day. They were both held without charge and released five days later.

Before being released, Ngami was forced to read a statement on national media calling on teachers to return work.

Other CPRE members have been harassed and intimated and some have gone into hiding after their houses were searched without a warrant.

Two union members arrested after peaceful strike: The teachers' strike begun on 25 February, after negotiations stalled between the Congolese authorities and trade unions over teacher's status in the public sector.

Hilaire Eyima, head of the French department at the school Lycée de la Révolution, was arrested by plainclothes police officers at his home on April 18th because of this use of SMS to spread information about the strike. He was held at the headquarters of the General Directorate for the Surveillance of the Territory (DGST).

Claude Nzingoula, a teacher at the medical school in the capital Brazzaville was arrested on April 19th at his school and was also taken to the GDST headquarters.

They have reportedly been denied access to a lawyer of their choice and have been held for a week without any charge.

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