A/HRC/10/29 (a) Views expressed by the State under review on the recommendations and/or conclusions as well as on its voluntary commitments and on the outcome 625. The delegation of Colombia thanked Member States and the troika members for their active role in its review. Colombia recalled its involvement in the institution-building process of the United Nations human rights system, saying it had great faith in multilateralism, which reflected the democratic values on which the structures of the Colombian State were founded. 626. The universal periodic review process had led the country’s institutions to reflect deeply on finding better ways to coordinate efforts to guarantee the rights of all in the country. The process of reporting had given Colombia an opportunity to hear the voices of social organizations and local authorities, strengthen coordination between institutions, review practices, identify achievements and shortcomings and plan for the immediate future. It noted the concerns and recommendations made by States and reminded delegates that Colombia had accepted most of the recommendations. Over the past three months, the Government had undertaken a detailed review of the voluntary commitments made by Colombia and the recommendations accepted, enabling it to assign responsibilities and set targets. As of 10 June 2009, the webpage of the Presidential human rights programme would carry a report on follow-up to the implementation of recommendations and commitments. The webpage would be updated every four months. 627. The efforts made by Colombia since its review included extending official invitations in January to the special rapporteurs on extrajudicial executions, the rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous peoples and the independence of judges and lawyers, as well as to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on human rights defenders. Colombia had also voluntarily accepted implementation of the mechanism to supervise and present reports contained in Security Council resolution 1612 (2005) on children and armed conflict. The high-level inter-sectoral commission that defined the Government’s public policy on preventing the recruitment of children had produced a report of its first year activities for the United Nations task force on this mechanism. Colombia also continued to work with the international community in following up on the implementation of the recommendations made by OHCHR in 2008. 628. The delegation said Colombia had strengthened its fight against crime and all forms of violence. New legislation had been enacted and new practices to prevent violations by law enforcement officials had been developed, including public accountability for complaints received. Strict measures had been taken with regard to the repeated complaints on murders by such officials, and no further complaints had been received since October 2008. 629. Progress had also been made in eliminating anti-personnel mines through humanitarian demining operations. Work continued in strengthening the justice system and eliminating impunity. In recent weeks, the President had approved a new law on intelligence gathering, establishing mechanisms to ensure transparency. Efforts to guarantee economic, social and cultural rights continued, particularly in the spheres of health and education. 630. The report of the Inter-American Press Society for 2008 acknowledged the progress made in providing guarantees for the exercise of journalism in Colombia. The delegation cited the decision by the Constitutional Court, as a result of complaints by civil society, to grant equal treatment, in terms of rights and responsibilities before the law, to same-sex unions. The decision represented significant progress towards overcoming discrimination. 631. Such progress did not mean that the State was unaware of the enormous challenges that still existed. The Government shared the Council’s concerns about the persistence of the phenomenon of internal displacement in Colombia. The efforts of national institutions GE.09-17451 189