OMAN RATIFIES ILO FORCED LABOR AND MINIMUM AGE

UNCLAS MUSCAT 001045 SIPDIS SENSITIVE DEPT FOR NEA/ARPI (TROBERTS),DRL (JDEMARIA),G/TIP US MISSION GENEVA FOR JCHAMBERLIN DEPT PASS USTR FOR J. BUNTIN AND A. ROSENBERG USDOL FOR J. SHEA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ELAB ETRD PREL SOCI MU SUBJECT: OMAN RATIFIES ILO FORCED LABOR AND MINIMUM AGE CONVENTIONS ¶1. (U) A royal decree of July 3 ratified International Labor Organization (ILO) Conventions 105 and 138, Abolition of Forced Labor and Minimum Age of Employment. The new decree followed the recent return of Oman's National Committee representatives from the ILO General Conference in Geneva. In light of Oman's previous ratification of Convention 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labor and Convention 29 on Forced Labor, Muscat has now ratified four of the eight fundamental ILO conventions. International agreements ratified by royal decree carry the immediate force of law. ¶2. (SBU) According to returning National Committee members, the General Conference in Geneva, while an overall success, reminded them of the gaps that remain between Oman's progressively evolving labor law and the international standards to which it aspires. They believe that the signing of the two additional conventions symbolizes Oman's commitment to bridge those gaps and establish internationally recognized labor regulations for its workforce. BALTIMORE