A/HRC/30/7 9. Also, a subcommission was created to set up the national mechanism for the prevention of torture, also with civil society participation. The subcommission agreed that the national mechanism would be a new independent institution created by law. 10. The delegation added that, in compliance with universal periodic review commitments, Panama had ratified the convention on statelessness, the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and the Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189) of the International Labour Organization (ILO). Likewise, Panama had accepted the competence of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination to receive individual petitions. The debate regarding the ratification of ILO Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169) was ongoing within a recently established working group comprising representatives of the Government and of indigenous peoples. 11. Moreover, under the standing invitation to special procedures mandate holders, Panama had received visits from the Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples and the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent. 12. The delegation acknowledged that some reports before the United Nations treaty bodies remained pending. The aforementioned standing human rights commission would draft a workplan to address this issue in the near future. 13. The delegation considered that the fight against discrimination should begin by acknowledging its existence. The Government had recognized the persistence of cultural and social attitudes that tended to discriminate against certain groups. In this context, to address the absence of statistical data relating to persons of African descent and the indigenous population, the 2010 census included the option for respondents to self-identify as Afro-descendant or indigenous. Additionally, the Government had adopted extensive legislation on affirmative action to protect the lands, culture and institutions of indigenous peoples. Also, electoral districts had been designed to facilitate the election of indigenous representatives to the National Assembly. The delegation acknowledged, however, that the enactment of comprehensive legislation prohibiting discrimination on any ground, including race and ethnicity, was still pending. 14. Regarding the rights of indigenous peoples, the delegation recalled the restoration of the repealed articles of the General Environmental Law granting indigenous people rights over natural resources on the lands they inhabit, the adoption of legislation on the protection of traditional medicines and the right to consultation, and the recent legislative restoration of the free and informed consent of indigenous peoples in relation to measures affecting them. The delegation recognized, however, that the indigenous population continued to have the highest rates of poverty and extreme poverty. Therefore, the Government was preparing a comprehensive development plan with the participation of indigenous peoples. 15. The delegation indicated that the Government had requested the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to provide technical assistance aimed at training the police in the proper use of force and incorporating in the curriculum of the police institute a human rights approach. 16. The delegation acknowledged that serious human rights violations were committed during the events of 6–10 July 2010 in Changuinola. Law 144/ 2015, which was adopted with the consent of the concerned persons, established a series of measures for providing redress to the victims. Furthermore, during the public enactment of the Law, the President of Panama, Juan Carlos Varela, apologized on behalf of the State to the victims and people affected by the events. 4