A/HRC/33/25 24. Ms. del Águila drew attention to additional layers of discrimination faced by indigenous women. Despite some advances for indigenous people, it was noted that work related to such discrimination was still very much in progress, with the media sometimes perpetuating stereotypes. Discrimination was a reality, not only in formal political spheres but also at the community level and in some traditional indigenous legal systems. She stressed the need for support for indigenous women leaders to ensure that local laws were respectful of the equal rights of men and women. 25. In the discussion that followed the presentations, reference was made to the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly goals 5 and 16, and to possible links between the Sustainable Development Goals and human rights treaties to give effect to full and meaningful participation. The role of international cooperation and of universal and regional mechanisms to ensure the removal of barriers to effective participation was also underscored. It was stated that illiteracy was one of the cross-cutting issues that impacted on the right to vote and to be elected, and that it should be subject to more detailed guidance. Participants also noted that lack of access to information was one of the barriers to holding governments accountable and ensuring meaningful participation. The importance of quotas for women and minorities was emphasized. C. Innovations and trends in regard to the right to participate in public affairs 26. Fernando Méndez, a representative of the Centre for Research on Direct Democracy, made a presentation on voter advice applications. Highlighting four aspects of democracy (transparency, participation, spaces of deliberation, and citizens’ contestation), Mr. Méndez singled out the aspects that were targeted by different technological tools. He spoke about voter advice applications that were focused on increasing participation and transparency in the political marketplace by better matching the policy preferences of citizens with the existing political options. He defined voter advice applications as digital tools designed to enhance voter education by matching the policy preferences of the user with the main positions of the parties defined in the system. 27. Mr. Méndez noted that voter advice applications had originated in the 1990s as a paper-based system. They had then been developed further, for the Internet and social media, particularly in institutional environments where many parties operated. He noted that, as we were witnessing increased party system fragmentation and electoral volatility, users were turning to these tools for information about the policy positions of parties. He stated that voter advice applications were highly popular, and that according to estimates, up to 40 per cent of the electorate in Europe consulted such tools. Mr. Méndez also highlighted the existence of evidence that these applications were boosting political participation, especially among young people. He distinguished two types of voter advice application, one based on candidates and the other based on parties. He concluded that voter advice applications could level the political playing field by giving exposure to minor parties. Voter advice applications allowed candidates to bypass the monopoly of organized parties and contributed to the promotion of independent candidates. However, since voter advice applications represented a significant intervention in the electoral context, the questionnaires used for the applications had to be carefully designed and needed to provide safeguards in regard to data protection and security. 28. Beth Simone Noveck, co-founder of the Governance Lab at New York University, discussed different trends in the use of technologies to increase public participation. She noted that over the past few years there had been a significant uptake of technology for participation. Increasingly, there had been a shift away from asking people about what they felt, with a view to creating more robust forms of engagement that went beyond mere 10