Equatorial Guinea

Article 5 

The fundamentals of the Equatoguinean society are: 

1. The respect to the human being, his dignity and freedom, and other fundamental rights.
2. The protection of the Family, the basis of the Equatoguinean society.
3. The recognition of equality between men and women.
4. The protection of labor through which man develops its personality of creating wealth for the Nation in favor of social well-being.
5. The promotion of economic development of the Nation;
6. The promotion of the social and cultural development of the Equatoguinean citizens to make real in them the supreme values of the State.

Article 8 

The Equatoguinean State abides to the principles of International Law and reaffirms its attachment to the rights and obligations that arise from the Organizations and International Organizations to which it is a member. 

Article 13 

(1) Every citizen enjoys the following rights and freedoms:  

1. The respect of his person, life, personal integrity, its dignity and his full material and moral development. The death penalty can only be imposed by a crime established by the law.
2. To freedom of working.
3. To not being deprived of their freedom save by virtue of a judicial order, except in those cases provided by the Law and in flagrant crimes.

(3) The legislative provisions will define the conditions under which these rights and liberties will be exercised. 

Article 14 

The enumeration of the fundamental rights recognized in this chapter does not exclude those guaranteed by the Fundamental Law, nor others of analogue nature and that are derived from human dignity, from the principle of sovereignty of the people or the social and democratic state of law and the republican form of government. 

Article 22: The State shall ensure the protection of every person from birth, and foster his normal development and ensure his security for his moral, psychological and physical integration as well as his family life. It shall encourage and promote primary health care as the cornerstone of the development of this sector.  

Article 26 

1. Work is a right and social duty. The State recognizes its constructive role in improving the well-being and the development of its national wealth. The State promotes the economical and social conditions to eradicate poverty, misery and ensures to all the citizens of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea with equality the possibilities of a useful occupation that allows them not to be threatened by necessity.
2. The law will define the conditions for the exercise of this right.

Constitution of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea 1991 (revised 2012) (PDF)

Article 1. Definitions 

For the purposes of this Law, the following definitions shall apply: 

(a) Trafficking in persons: the recruitment, transportation, transfer,harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation, so that said person can engage in any type of sexual exploitation, pornography, debt servitude, forced labour or services, forced marriage, unlawful adoption, slavery or practices similar to slavery, or the removal of organs; 

(i) Offense: the conduct described in this Law, the consummation of which is punished under the provisions thereof; 

Article 2. Offense of Smuggling Migrants 

This offense shall be incurred by anyone who promotes, induces, constrains, finances, transports by land, sea, or air, or cooperates in any way in the illegal entry into or departure of persons from the country, as the point of origin, destination, or transit, without complying with the legal requirements, in order to obtain, directly or indirectly, some financial benefit for oneself or others. Such action shall be punishable by imprisonment of 5 to 10 years and a fine ranging between 7 and 77 million CFA francs. 

Article 3. Offense of Trafficking in Persons 

This offense shall be incurred by anyone who engages in the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation, so that said person will engage in begging, or in any type of sexual exploitation, pornography, debt servitude, forced marriage, irregular adoption, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs, even with the consent of the victim; such action shall be punishable by imprisonment of 10 to 15 years and a fine of at least 50 million CFA francs. 

Article 4. Offense of Parental Abuse of Minors 

This offense consists of the use of children by their parents for the itinerant sale of goods or other work during the school day or at night. This offense shall be punished by imprisonment of one month to one year and a fine of between 50,000 and 500,000 CFA francs. 

Article 5. Offense of Child Labour 

This offense shall be incurred by anyone who employs, offers work to, or accepts a minor for work on his own behalf or that of another, in the formal or informal market, and shall be punished by imprisonment of one year and a maximum fine of 250,000 CFA francs. 

Article 7. Criminal Liability of Legal Entities 

Legal entities shall be criminally liable and may be prosecuted for the smuggling of migrants and trafficking in persons committed by any managerial, administrative, or oversight agency, by any agency havinggeneral or collective social-welfare responsibility, or by any representatives acting for or on behalf of such legal entities, and shall be punished by any or all of the following penalties: 

(a) A fine of five times the amount stipulated for natural persons;  

(b) Dissolution of the entity, if the offense prosecuted under the provisions of this Law would have been punished by imprisonment of over 15 years had it been committed by a natural person;  

(c) Prohibition to engage, either directly or indirectly, in one or more of its professional or social activities, either permanently or for a period of at least ten years;  

(d) Monitoring by the courts for a period of no less than five years;  

(e) Prohibition by one or more of the principal places of business, headquarters, branches, or locations belonging the company used in the commission of the offense to engage in any activities, either permanently or for a period of at least ten years;  

(f) Prohibition, for a period not to exceed five years, to use credit cards or to issue commercial instruments, such as checks, bills of exchange, or promissory notes, except those that allow funds to be withdrawn by their issuer when the latter is the beneficiary thereof, or those that are certified;  

(g) Confiscation of the objects used or intended to be used to commit the offense, or of the proceeds from the offense; and  

(h) Publication of the sentence [sic]. The liability of legal entities shall not exclude the liability of any natural person who is the author or accomplice of the above-mentioned offenses. The penalties listed under (a) to (i) of this Article shall apply to legal entities established under public law, political parties, legally established legal movements or groups, unions or professional associations, NGOs, and religious organizations recognized as such under law when these entities commit such offenses. 

Article 8. Attempt to Commit the Offenses 

Any attempt to commit the offense of smuggling migrants or trafficking in persons shall be punished as if the actual offense had been committed. 

Article 9. Complicity 

Those who participate as accomplices in the commission of the offense of smuggling migrants and trafficking in persons shall be subject to the same punishment as that imposed on the actual perpetrators of the offense. 

Article 10. Aggravating Circumstances 

The following shall be considered circumstances aggravating the offense of smuggling migrants or trafficking in persons:  

(a) When the death of the person who is the victim of the smuggling or trafficking results, or when the victim suffers physical or psychological harm, either temporarily or permanently;  

(b) When one or more perpetrators of the offense are officials, elected or otherwise, of the central government or of local associations, or are members of the Armed Forces or of the State Security Forces;  

(c) When a criminal group is involved and said group can be defined as a national or transnational organized criminal group, or one that has participated in the smuggling of migrants or the trafficking in persons;  

(d) When the commission of the offense results in more than one victim;  

(e) When the offense has been committed against persons suffering from mental distress or illness, either temporary or permanent, or persons under the age of 18;  

(f) When the person responsible is the spouse, partner, or relative to the third degree of consanguinity or first degree of affinity of the victim of the offense;  

(g) When the perpetrator or perpetrators commit the offense of smuggling migrants or trafficking in persons more than once; (h) When a person creates, alters, produces, or falsifies travel or identification documents, supplies or facilitates the possession of such documents or any others, or illegally obtains a visa for himself or another, or encourages another to do so.  

The penalty for offenses committed with the aggravating circumstances described in this Article shall be imprisonment of five years, added to the principal penalty for said offenses. 

Article 11. Extenuating Circumstances 

If the perpetrator of the offense of smuggling migrants or trafficking in persons or his accomplice cooperates or identifies with certainty the organizers of such activities or provides information leading to their arrest, such persons may, under a well-founded order issued by the Public Prosecutor, be exempted from criminal prosecution. 

Article 11. Work of minors 

(1) The work of children under the age of fourteen is prohibited. 

(2) However, those who have reached the age of thirteen may undertake light work, provided that they are not liable to prejudice their health or development, as well as their attendance at school, their participation in approved vocational guidance or training programs by the competent authorities, nor the education they receive. 

(3) Twelve-year-olds may be admitted to certain jobs or light work of an artisan or agricultural character, the labour authorities, who shall consult beforehand the professional organizations of workers, when they exist, and shall pay particular attention to the health, physical and moral integrity and education of such minors. 

(4) The minimum age for admission to work which by its nature or the conditions under which it is carried out may be hazardous to the health, safety or morals of minors shall be sixteen years. In any case, the professional organizations of workers, where they exist, and the labour authorities shall ensure that sufficient guarantees of protection are adopted for minors and that, before entering work, they receive adequate and specific professional training in the relevant branch of activity. The labour authorities may also raise the minimum age for admission to certain jobs to eighteen years, while this does not break the principle of equal employment opportunity. 

(5) Minors cannot enter into employment contracts without the authorization of their father, mother or legal representative. 

(6) An employer who hires the services of minors who have not reached the minimum age required to work, or who are not legally authorized to do so, shall in any case pay them the salary and other legal benefits, without prejudice to legal sanctions Which may correspond. 

Article 23. Obligations of the employer 

It is the duty of the employer: 

1. A) give effective employment to their workers;
2. B) Provide them with adequate instruments of work;
3. C) indemnify them for the loss of their own tools or tools entrusted to the care of the employer;
4. D) to respect and consider them and to refrain from mistreatment in word or deed;
5. E) attending their justified complaints;
6. F) to refrain from influencing their religious convictions;
7. G) not imposing penalties to them other than the provisions of this law;
8. H) not to retaliate against workers for appealing to the authorities in defense of their labour rights;
9. I) to observe good morals and customs during working hours;
10. J) fulfil the other labour obligations imposed by the laws.

Article 24. Rights of the worker 

(1) The worker has the following basic rights, with the content that for each one of them establish specific, legal or contractual rules: 

1. A) work and free choice of profession or trade;
2. B) to the effective occupation;
3. C) not be discriminated in any way and for any reason;
4. D) promotion and vocational training at work;
5. E) their physical integrity, rest and work in good conditions of safety and hygiene;
6. F) respect for their privacy and respect for their dignity;
7. G) to the punctual perception of the remuneration agreed or legally established;
8. H) to the exercise of the actions derived from the contract of employment;
9. I) professional association;
10. J) collective bargaining.

(2) Employers may not reduce or eliminate the rights and benefits recognized to their workers by the time of enactment of this law.55 

Article 57. Minimum wage 

(1) The minimum wage shall be fixed periodically, at least every two years, by decree, after consultation, on an equal basis, with representatives of representative organizations of employers and workers or, failing that, representatives of the Employers and workers concerned; As far as possible, persons of recognized competence to represent the general interests of the country shall be consulted, after having received the opinion of the most representative professional organizations, where they exist. 

(2) In determining the minimum wage, the following shall be taken into account as soon as possible: 

1. A) the needs of workers and their families, taking into account the general level of wages, the cost of living, social security benefits and the relative standard of living of other social groups;
2. B) economic factors, including the requirements of economic development, levels of productivity and the desirability of achieving and maintaining a high level of employment;
3. C) the conditions, the time and the place in which the work is carried out.

Art. 86. Employers' infractions 

(1) Employers' infringements of the labour provisions will be known and sanctioned, through the appropriate administrative file, by the labour authorities. 

(2) The penalties shall be graduated in accordance with the gravity of the infraction, malice or falsity of the employer, number of workers affected, economic importance of the company and recidivism, if applicable. 

(3) Employers' infractions will be sanctioned with a fine, at the proposal of the labour inspection, or the delegation of labour, of: 

1. A) up to CFAF 200 000, by the Delegate of Labour;
2. B) up to CFAF 500 000 by the Director-General for Labour, Employment and Occupational Training;
3. C) up to CFAF 2 000 000 by the Minister for Labour, Social Security and the Advancement of Women.

(4) In situations of serious danger to the life or health of workers, the Labour Inspector may order the suspension of work activities for a specified period of time. In case of recidivism, the Minister of Labour and Social Promotion, at the proposal of the Inspector, may order the temporary or definitive closure of the work centre. Its decision will be appealed against before the Council of Ministers. 

Law No 2/1990 on General Labour Standards (PDF)