A/HRC/24/13 42. Guatemala commended the establishment of the National Action Programme and laws on domestic violence and detainees’ rights. It noted concerns by CERD regarding the hostile attitude by the population towards ethnic Armenians and urged measures to address this. 43. Hungary welcomed Azerbaijan’s ratification of CRPD, OP-CRPD and OP-CAT, and the appointment of the Ombudsman as the national preventive mechanism. It noted Azerbaijan’s cooperation with special procedures and its Constitutional guarantees of freedom of assembly. It reiterated the call for an improvement of children’s rights. 44. Indonesia welcomed Azerbaijan’s acceptance of all visit requests from special procedures mandate holders. It commended the adoption of laws on gender equality and combating domestic violence and appreciated the measures taken to combat trafficking in persons. It expressed concern about undocumented and irregular migrant workers. 45. Iraq noted Azerbaijan’s commitment to promoting and protecting human rights. It applauded the measures to bring national legislation in line with international obligations, the improved legal norms and accession to international instruments. 46. Ireland noted Azerbaijan’s intention to decriminalize defamation, but also noted the concerns raised by human rights treaty bodies and the special procedures on restrictions to freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly, and restrictions on the work of human rights defenders. It also had concerns about the use of torture and ill-treatment. 47. Italy welcomed the new focal point for human rights in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. However, it noted several remaining areas of concern. It commended the initiatives to promote religious dialogue and appreciated the progress made in the area of women’s rights. 48. On the issue of judicial reform, Azerbaijan recalled that two independent bodies had been established to manage judicial proceedings, namely the Judicial Council, an independent body responsible for all issues relating to the administration of justice; and the Committee to select judges. In recent years, the number of judges has doubled. The judge selection process has been accepted by the Council of Europe and is considered a model for other countries. 49. As of 2011, Administrative Courts were established to ensure the independence of the new judicial bodies. These were created according to the principle of the regional courts, and their activities have proven to be very effective. Statistics related to these courts indicate that 75 to 80 per cent of complaints lodged by citizens on the violations of their rights by officials and/or by civil servants have been found to be unfounded by these Administrative Courts. Moreover, great attention has been paid in recent years to increasing the salaries of judges, which have been raised some thirty-fold over the last few years. 50. Furthermore, Azerbaijan intends to improve the juvenile justice system. Azerbaijan has been working in cooperation with the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) on a draft law on juvenile justice for some time and expects to achieve a positive outcome in the near future. 51. On the issue of freedom and independence of NGOs, Azerbaijan highlighted that freedom of association is one of the key human rights recognized by the Constitution. Some 3,000 NGOs are currently registered in the country and there has been a stable growth in the number of NGOs registered over the last five years with 20 per cent additional NGOs registered each year. Regarding legislation regulating NGO registration, it is possible for NGOs to work without registering. However, NGOs that wish to receive a legal status must submit a request for registration to the Ministry of Justice. In fact, there are no restrictions on the registration of NGOs. Azerbaijan added that amendments and 8