A/HRC/13/56 placed in fulfilling the Millennium Development Goals, which it was close to achieving. It encouraged Brunei Darussalam to continue its efforts to promote and protect the rights of its people, especially of vulnerable groups. 666. Cuba commended Brunei Darussalam’s commitment to the universal periodic review. It noted the country’s commitment to economic and social development, as shown by the excellent chance it had of achieving the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. The delegation of Brunei Darussalam had provided detailed information in the course of its review on human rights. Cuba welcomed Brunei Darussalam’s decision to accept the recommendations made by Cuba in a spirit of cooperation and constructive dialogue. 667. Indonesia expressed appreciation for Brunei Darussalam’s acceptance of recommendations, particularly Indonesia’s recommendation for harmonization of national legislation with international norms. Indonesia fully supported recommendations calling for the establishment of a legal and institutional framework to provide better human rights protection in Brunei Darussalam, and encouraged the State to consider accession to other international human rights instruments. Indonesia commended the efforts of Brunei Darussalam to fulfil its human rights obligations regarding socio-economic development, and appreciated the Government’s voluntary pledges to strengthen cooperation with civil society on human rights issues. It encouraged Brunei Darussalam to enhance and strengthen the work of the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights. 668. Pakistan valued the efforts and commitments of the Government of Brunei Darussalam in human rights promotion and protection, particularly in shaping pertinent social policies to improve the welfare of its citizens. Pakistan was encouraged to note that Brunei Darussalam was considering taking the necessary steps to develop technical expertise to gain a better understanding of its obligations to ensure effective implementation of human rights instruments. Pakistan welcomed the fact that the country was in the process of establishing an effective and inclusive mechanism to follow up on recommendations. 669. The United States of America commended Brunei Darussalam’s enforcement of labour statutes protecting workers from abusive employers, and supported the recommendation to enforce such statutes to protect immigrant and temporary migrant workers. It strongly supported the recommendation to rescind the Sedition Act and the Newspaper Act, and appreciated Brunei Darussalam’s attention to the recommendations to allow religious groups to proselytize and practise their beliefs freely. It also expressed appreciation for the Government’s acceptance of recommendations to increase protection for women, children and vulnerable groups and underlined the importance of recommendations to criminalize all acts of rape and sexual violence against women and children. It supported recommendations for the further strengthening of human rights infrastructure and training for officials. 670. Nepal applauded Brunei Darussalam’s candid commitment to human rights and fundamental freedoms. It appreciated the emphasis on inter-religious and inter-ethnic harmony, and traditional family values as the fundamentals of social fabric. It noted Brunei Darussalam’s policy of providing a healthy environment, quality education, adequate housing, food and job security. It was pleased to see developments on the economic, social, cultural and political fronts, contributing to the realization of human rights, and congratulated Brunei Darussalam on ranking high in the United Nations Human Development Index. 671. China noted Brunei Darussalam’s careful response to the universal periodic review recommendations and measures taken to follow up on them. It supported the Government’s vision to further develop economic, social and cultural rights to eliminate poverty and improve the living standards of its people. China appreciated the attention given to the 179