A/HRC/4/105 Page 8 III. OVERVIEW OF INFORMATION PROVIDED BY MEMBER STATES 19. In accordance with Commission resolution 2005/48, the High Commissioner sent a comprehensive note verbale on 14 December 2006 to the Member States of the United Nations, the relevant international organizations and to a number of civil society organizations working on the issue of mass exodus, asking them to provide information to be included in this report. 20. As of 19 February 2007, information had been received from the following Governments: Argentina, Costa Rica, Finland, Georgia, Jamaica, Japan, Lebanon, and the Philippines. In addition, information was received from UNHCR. The content of each of these replies is summarized below. Argentina 21. In a communication dated 4 January 2007, the Government of Argentina transmitted its reply to the note verbale. In particular, it recalled that Argentina is a party to the 1951 Convention related to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol and reported that the institution in charge of determining refugee status has supported diverse actions aimed at improving the mechanism for determining the eligibility of refugees and reducing the time it takes to evaluate their cases. Significant advances in the matter of protection of the rights of refugees have been achieved and UNHCR, according to the information received, has praised the level of technical analysis. 22. In Argentina, the status of refugee is recognized for "individuals who have been discriminated against for religious reasons, objections of conscience, gender, or sexual orientation". Argentina has interpreted the definition of refugee broadly and regularly accords the status of refugee to individuals persecuted by State agents. 23. The Government has strengthened the agency in charge of determining refugee status, equipping it with appropriate resources. The agency includes psychologists and lawyers and consists of about 16 people. The work on eligibility of refugees is based on the implementation of the recommendations of UNHCR. Each request triggers a personal assessment and the possibility of a review of the case by the Ministry of Interior prior to the decision of the Secretary of human rights of the Ministry of Justice. New challenges have been undertaken, one of the most important being the adoption of a refugee law that has systematized the existing regulations and that will open up possibilities for international cooperation in this area. It will also institutionalize the distribution of tasks among local institutions which will guarantee the best integration of refugees into society. 24. The authorities also reported that the general law for the recognition and protection of refugees (law 26.165) was adopted by Congress in November 2006. This law encodes the basic principles enshrined in international instruments regarding the protection of refugees and asylum-seekers: non-refoulement, including the prohibition on sending them back to the border; non-discrimination; no sanction for illegal entry into the country; confidentiality; and family unity. 25. The new law establishes a National Commission for Refugees (CONARE), which replaces the former Refugee Eligibility Committee (CEPARE), until now composed of immigration officials and staff of the Foreign Ministry. Under the new law, a representative of each of the