A/HRC/8/44 Page 9 27. Albania noted Japan’s role during the negotiations and the adoption of the International Convention on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and recommended that Japan complete the internal processes as soon as possible to ratify it, and also recommended that Japan ratify, as soon as possible, the First and Second Optional Protocols to ICCPR, the Optional Protocol to CAT and the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. Albania expressed concern that more than 100 prisoners are on death row in Japan and recommended that the Government examine as a priority the introduction of a formal moratorium on the implementation of death penalty. 28. Following the interventions, Japan noted that the Government pursues the goals of ensuring equal rights and opportunities for foreigners, respecting foreigners’ culture and values, and promoting mutual understanding to realize a society in which Japanese and foreigners can live together. With regard to measures to prevent trafficking in persons, Japan provided information, inter alia, on special provisions enabling victims of trafficking to stabilize their legal status, and that they are provided with medical treatment. An anonymous reporting line was established in 2007 to assist victims, and leaflets with information are published in nine languages. If victims wish to return to their home countries, Japan closely coordinates with interested agencies to support this and with other countries on these issues. The Ministry of Justice has developed protection systems to address the issue of bullying in schools, including the establishment of the Children’s Rights Hotline and the circulation of Children’s Rights SOS lettercards to all elementary and secondary schools. The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology is promoting the activities of the local schools and the boards of education through such activities as the provision of guidance and seminars, organizing model programmes to solve problems of bullying and violence at school, and supporting the school counselling system. With regard to the situation of women in the labour market, the Government referred to amendments to the Equal Employment Opportunity Law and other laws, which took effect in April 2007. Detrimental treatment of female workers due to pregnancy and child birth is prohibited, even if such treatment does not include dismissal, and a new provision was introduced to prohibit indirect discrimination. Japan expected that the proportion of women occupying leading positions in all spheres of society will increase to at least 30 per cent by 2020. In the 2007 elections of the House of Councillors 43 female parliamentarians were elected, which marked an increase from 13.6 percent in 2004 to 17.8 percent in 2007. 29. Japan pointed out that in the Pyongyang Declaration, the leaders of Japan and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea agreed on the basic principle that both Japan and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea would mutually waive all properties and claims and those of their nationals that had arisen from causes which occurred before 15 August 1945. Japan noted that it seeks to normalize its relationship with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in accordance with the declaration, to comprehensibly resolve outstanding issues of concern, including abductions, nuclear and missile issues, and settling an unfortunate past. The Delegation noted that the numbers the representative of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea had mentioned were totally groundless. Japan stressed its efforts, based on its Constitution and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, to realize a society where there is no discrimination due to race, ethnic groups or others and its active work towards the elimination of racial discrimination in the United Nations and other forums. The Government noted that foreigners who wish to obtain Japanese nationality are not requested to change their names to Japanese names, and stated that foreigners can decide on their names on their own after naturalization. It also noted that various foreigners’ schools, including Korean schools, are accepted as miscellaneous schools by the prefectures and that there is no discrimination between other miscellaneous schools and Korean schools. Japan considered that any human rights violations based on sexual or gender identity cannot be ignored, and it seeks to eradicate discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation through educational activities. The Government noted that sex re-assignment