A/HRC/31/14 43. Montenegro asked about the concrete measures undertaken to address violence, exploitation and abuse experienced by women and girls with disabilities in institutional settings. 44. Morocco welcomed awareness-raising measures to combat discrimination against Australian indigenous populations and commitments to combat slavery and human trafficking. 45. Mozambique noted the National Disability Strategy and Insurance Scheme, which were in line with human rights conventions. 46. Australia, responding to recommendations, noted that it was actively considering the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and its implementation in a federal system. 47. In addressing observations and recommendations relating to immigration, the delegation explained Australia was committed to ensuring that its position as one of the top three resettlement countries referred to by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) continued. Its strong border protection mechanisms had been successful in hampering the people smuggling trade and saving lives at sea. 48. Regarding regional processing arrangements, the delegation explained that the Government respected the jurisdiction of both Nauru and Papua New Guinea as sovereign countries, and noted that both countries had agreed to treat transferees with dignity and respect and ensure that relevant human rights standards, as well as the principle of nonrefoulement, were met. 49. The delegation explained that mandatory immigration detention was not exercised arbitrarily and that there had been significant headway in reducing the numbers of children held in detention. It was the Government’s position that children were not held in immigration detention centres but accommodated in alternative places of detention. The delegation explained that the country’s immigration detention network was under independent scrutiny by a range of bodies, including the Commonwealth Ombudsman and the Australian Human Rights Commission. 50. The delegation noted the National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking and Slavery 2015-2019. Australia reaffirmed its commitment to efforts that strengthened regional frameworks on irregular migration and human trafficking, including the Bali Process on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crime. 51. Myanmar welcomed the appointment of the Human Rights Commissioner to advance civil and political rights, the commitment to reducing the gender gap and the $4.4 billion Families Package. 52. Namibia noted initiatives to improve the livelihoods of indigenous peoples and commended the introduction of the Child Care Subsidy and Child Care Safety Net. 53. The Netherlands encouraged adequate funding for initiatives to reduce violence against women, while noting that lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons were de facto discriminated against in the Marriage Act. 54. New Zealand commended amendment of the Sex Discrimination Act and noted that further work was needed in the area of indigenous and minority rights. 55. Nicaragua welcomed the holding of a referendum that sought to constitutionally recognize indigenous peoples. 56. Nigeria commended the National Anti-Racism Partnership and programmes for persons with disabilities and urged Australia to hold the constitutional referendum. 6

Select target paragraph3

Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents