

U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005 - San Marino

Publisher United States Department of State
Publication Date 8 March 2006
Cite as United States Department of State, U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005 - San Marino , 8 March 2006, available at: [accessed 31 July 2015]

Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
March 8, 2006

San Marino, with a population of approximately 28 thousand, is a democratic, multiparty republic. The popularly elected parliament, the Great and General Council (GGC), selects two of its members to serve as Captains Regent (co-heads of state). They preside over meetings of the GGC and the cabinet (congress of state), which has no more than ten other members (secretaries of state) who the GGC also selects. The most recent parliamentary elections held in 2001 were free and fair. The civilian authorities generally maintained effective control of the security forces.




a. Arbitrary or Unlawful Deprivation of Life


b. Disappearance

There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.



Prison and Detection Center Conditions

Prison conditions generally met international standards, and the government permitted visits by independent human rights observers, but there were none during the year.

d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention


Role of the Police and Security Apparatus

The Ministry of Interior controls the civil police, who are responsible for domestic security, traffic, and civil defense. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs controls the gendarmerie and the national guard, who are responsible for the protection of the national borders and the security of public buildings and who act in coordination with the civil police in the prevention of crime and the maintenance of public order.


Arrest and Detention

Suspects were apprehended openly with warrants based on sufficient evidence and issued by a duly authorized official. The law provides a detainee with the right to a prompt judicial determination of the legality of his detention, and the authorities generally respected this right in practice. There is a well functioning bail system. Detainees are allowed prompt access to family members and to a lawyer of their choice; the state provides legal assistance to indigent persons.

There were no reports of political detainees.

e. Denial of Fair Public Trial





Trial Procedures



Political Prisoners

There were no reports of political prisoners.



2. Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:

a. Freedom of Speech and Press


b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association


c. Freedom of Religion




Societal Abuses and Discrimination

There were fewer than 12 Muslims and no known Jewish citizens in the country. During the year there were no reports of any violence or discrimination against religious minorities or anti-Semitic acts.





Protection of Refugees

The law does not provide for the granting of asylum or refugee status in accordance with the 1951 UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 protocol, but the government has a system for providing protection to refugees. In practice, the government provided protection against refoulement, the return of persons to a country where they feared persecution. The government may grant refugee status or asylum by an act of the cabinet. For humanitarian reasons, the government granted a year permit of stay to an Eritrean woman and her two children, which will expire in April 2006.




Elections and Political Participation

Most recent elections held in 2001 were considered free and fair. The Christian Democratic Party (DCS) obtained 25 of the 60 Parliamentary seats and confirmed the government alliance with the Socialist Party (PSS), which won 14 seats. However, a period of political instability ensued, and several short-lived governments were elected through 2003, when the present large coalition government including the DCS, PSS, and the Party of Democrats, the third largest party with 12 parliamentary seats, was elected. The next general elections are expected to take place in April or May 2006.

There were nine women in the 60-seat parliament and one woman in the eight-seat cabinet.

There were no members of minorities in the government.

Government Corruption and Transparency


The law provides for public access to government activity and the government provides access for citizens and noncitizens through the GGC's Web site.


There were no domestic human rights organizations, although the government does not restrict their formation. The government declared itself open to investigations of alleged human rights abuses by international nongovernmental organizations, but there were no known requests during the year.

5. Discrimination, Societal Abuses, and Trafficking in Persons




Rape was very rare. During the year there were no reports of rape. Rape, including spousal rape, is a criminal offense, and the government effectively prosecuted those accused of such crimes. The penalty for rape is two to six years' imprisonment. In the case of aggravating circumstances the penalty is 4 to 10 years' imprisonment.

Prostitution is not legal, and it was not common.




The government was committed to children's rights and welfare.



Violence against or abuse of children was uncommon. There were no reported cases during the year; however, the judicial investigations of a 2003 case of sexual abuse by a father against his teenage adopted daughter and a similar sexual abuse crime committed in 2004 were ongoing at year's end.

Trafficking in Persons


Persons with Disabilities

The law prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities in employment, education, access to health care, or in the provision of other state services, and the government effectively enforced these provisions. There were no reports of societal discrimination against persons with disabilities. The ministry for territory has not fully implemented a law that mandates easier access to public buildings by persons with disabilities, and many buildings were inaccessible.

6. Worker Rights

a. The Right of Association

By law all workers (except the armed forces) are free to form and join unions, and workers exercised this right in practice. The law sets the conditions to establish labor unions. Union members constituted approximately 50 percent of the country's non-self-employed work force, which numbered approximately 15 thousand citizens plus 5 thousand nonresident Italians. A "conciliatory committee" composed of representatives from labor, business, and government generally resolved complaints of antiunion discrimination amicably.

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively


c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor


d. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment


e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

The national minimum wage of approximately $8 (6.7 euros) per hour did not provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. However, wages generally were higher than the minimum.

The law sets the workweek at 36 hours in the public sector, and 37½ hours for industry and private businesses, with 24 consecutive hours of rest per week mandated for workers in either category. The law requires a premium payment for overtime and allows a maximum of two hours of overtime per day. There was effective enforcement of laws and industry contracts that prohibit excessive compulsory overtime.

The government set safety and health standards, and the judicial system effectively enforced these standards. Most workplaces complied with the standards; however, there were some exceptions. The construction industry did not consistently abide by safety regulations, such as work hour limitations. However, on-the-job injuries declined due to stricter safety rules and more severe penalties for violations imposed by the government, in addition to improved training for the workforce. Workers have the right to remove themselves from situations that endanger health or safety without jeopardy to their employment, and the authorities effectively enforced this right.

Nearly one-quarter of the workforce is nonresident, commuting from nearby Italy. Two laws treat legal foreign workers differently from citizens of the country: the first prohibits indefinite employment status and the state grants a work permit that has to be renewed every 12 months. The second requires non-Italian foreign workers to obtain an Italian residence permit before they can apply for employment. In practice, these provisions limit unemployment benefits for foreigners to a period of less than 12 months.

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