A/HRC/27/35 pointed out the broad gap between international standards and their implementation. There was therefore a need for Governments to step up their efforts to close this gap and to abide by their international commitment to respect the fundamental right to press freedom in action, not just in words. 41. The Special Rapporteur recalled that, although States were committed at the international level in the context of the United Nations and regional organizations, internal political will, which was critically important, was often lacking. Commitments at the international level had to translate to action at the national level. Mr. Smyth agreed, and stressed the importance of action by States at the ground level, within their countries. What was needed was not another United Nations instrument, but transparency and political will to act. Mr. Smyth repeated that providing information to UNESCO on steps taken to investigate and prosecute violence against journalists would be a positive first step. Referring to the statistics gathered by the Committee to Protect Journalist, he pointed out that political groups, including terrorists, committed between 30 and 40 per cent of all murders of journalist. In 25 per cent of the cases, however, there was suspected involvement of State actors. Putting in place special protection mechanisms and appointing specialized prosecutors were important measures. The first step, however, was ensuring that Member States were transparent and provided information. 42. The Special Rapporteur also made reference to the United Nations Plan of Action on Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity, under which it was envisaged that information on actions and violations should be brought together in a database and published. While fully aware of the problems that this may raise in terms of privacy and security for journalists, the Special Rapporteur suggested that it should be explored further. E. Regional and national initiatives 43. Several delegations shared information about the different measures that had been taken at the regional and national levels to promote and protect the right to freedom of opinion and expression, the freedom of the media and the safety of journalists. These measures included legislative initiatives, combating impunity and protection initiatives, as well as public information and awareness-raising efforts. 44. At the regional level, the delegation of the European Union referred to the Human Rights Guidelines on Freedom of Expression Online and Offline, adopted on 12 May 2014, in which the European Union reaffirmed the highest priority to the safety of journalists, and that it would take all appropriate steps to ensure their protection, though preventive measures and by urging effective investigations when violations occur. The delegation of the International Organization of la Francophonie stated that the safety of journalists was a key issue for the organization, a commitment expressed in the Bamako Declaration of 2000 and at the organization’s Kinshasa summit in 2012. One of its priorities was putting in place a legal framework that permitted the media to play their role freely. Support missions were conducted to the Member States of the organization. Lastly, the delegate of Switzerland announced that, as current President of OSCE, Switzerland intended to focus on civil society, which included journalists and other media workers, and that it was to organize a meeting to discuss developments regarding the rights, responsibilities and efforts of OSCE with regard to freedom of expression and freedom of the media. 45. With regard to legislative initiatives, many States pointed out that freedom of expression and the right to information were protected by their Constitution, and reported recent or upcoming changes in their laws affecting the safety of journalists. The representative of India, for example, reported that the Constitution of India guaranteed not only freedom of speech and expression but also full Internet freedom. The Information 12