A/HRC/42/31 17. OHCHR continued to build the capacity of Cambodian civil society organizations. Through six training sessions it trained 139 male, 76 female and 10 transgender civil society members, including grass-roots and land activists and trade unionists, from Kratie, Odor Meanchey, Banteay Meanchey, Battambang, Preah Vihear, Siem Reap, Kampong Speu, Svay Rieng, Kampong Cham and Koh Kong Provinces. Participants were trained on monitoring methodology, preparation of submissions to international mechanisms and advocacy. OHCHR supported six training sessions to assist civil society organizations with their submissions to the third universal periodic review of Cambodia; 384 people participated, 123 of them women. OHCHR conducted two training sessions on basic aspects of human rights to 25 young people (15 of them female), members of a youth organization, in Battambang and Phnom Penh. 18. In order to promote the protection of civil society organizations, OHCHR drafted, in consultation with them, a protection handbook that includes practical information in a simple format to assist individuals and organizations develop a safety and security plan and understand the relevant human rights protection mechanisms nationally and internationally. The handbook will be published later in 2019. 19. OHCHR continued monitoring public gatherings, many of them assemblies convened in relation to land and housing rights. On 10 December 2018, national and provincial authorities indicated that they would not allow certain activities to celebrate Human Rights Day. OHCHR contacted the relevant authorities and in some – but not all – cases assemblies were allowed to proceed. OHCHR wrote to the Ministry of Interior raising concerns about respect for the right to freedom of peaceful assembly. On 8 March 2019, the Government did not authorize a march related to a proposed peaceful assembly on International Women’s Day. OHCHR and the United Nations Entity on Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-Women) sent a letter to the Ministry of Interior in connection with the banned march, raising their concerns about respect for the freedom of peaceful assembly. 20. On 6 July 2018, OHCHR sent a letter to the Ministry of Interior requesting its intervention in a case where the National Election Committee had indicated that an organization undertaking human rights monitoring might be in violation of the law, as the organization’s monitoring activities were not among the election-observation activities allowed and recognized by the Committee. OHCHR requested a public clarification that registration with the National Election Committee was required only for those organizations conducting election observation and stipulating that there were no restrictions on human rights monitoring related to the elections. On 25 July, OHCHR wrote to the National Election Committee in relation to reported complaints against former Cambodia National Rescue Party members with respect to their expression of intent not to vote. OHCHR encouraged the application of Cambodian law to be consistent with international standards on the right to freedom of expression, which do not permit restrictions on calls for a boycott of a non-compulsory vote. 21. OHCHR documented 851 cases of individuals who alleged violations of civil and political rights during the reporting period, including 295 individuals affiliated to existing or former political parties. OHCHR followed up on the cases either through relevant human rights mechanisms or directly with government authorities. III. Supporting prison reform 22. OHCHR continued its partnership with the General Department of Prisons to support prison reform. The Office conducted 30 visits to 14 prisons over the reporting period, following which it presented recommendations to the management of the prisons visited and raised relevant issues with the Department. The latest six-monthly prison visit authorization, granted in January 2019, no longer places restrictions on confidential interviews with detainees. 23. As a result of the ongoing governmental “campaign against illicit drugs” launched in January 2017, prison overcrowding has become a national challenge, leading to the call by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior in November 2018 for the courts to 5