A/HRC/39/42 27. The High Commissioner has repeatedly condemned the increasing obstruction of the work of the Joint Human Rights Office, whose teams have been denied access to morgues, hospitals and detention centres. Teams have been driven away from certain sites and subjected to threats, intimidation and physical attacks by the defence and security forces, limiting their ability to verify allegations of human rights violations committed during the demonstrations.6 The launching of an investigation in March 2018 by the military courts in Kinshasa into threats and attacks against staff of the Joint Human Rights Office is an encouraging development. 28. The Joint Human Rights Office has continued to provide technical and financial support for efforts by the National Human Rights Commission, the Parliament and civil society to promote the constitutionality of various bills under consideration relating to the exercise of fundamental freedoms and international rules and standards, and to ensure the protection of human rights defenders and other civil society activists in the exercise of their legitimate activities.7 29. Between June 2017 and May 2018, the Joint Human Rights Office organized or supported 155 training sessions throughout the country on human rights issues relating to the electoral process, attended by 9,620 people, including at least 2,694 women — representatives of civil society, the political and administrative authorities, police officers, journalists and political stakeholders. At least 33 of these training sessions focused on the participation of women in the electoral process. 30. The Joint Human Rights Office has also provided legal support and multifaceted assistance in the area of protection and has dealt with 372 cases of threats and human rights violations against 264 human rights defenders, 59 victims, 37 journalists and 12 witnesses of violations — an increase of nearly 84 per cent from the previous reporting period. B. Protection of civilians in conflict areas 31. The Human Rights Committee urged the Government to take steps to assist and to protect civilian populations in areas of armed conflict and internally displaced persons. It called on the Government to cooperate fully with all United Nations entities in dealing with the allegations of violations of human rights and international humanitarian law in Kasaï (see CCPR/C/COD/CO/4, paras. 26 and 28). 32. During the country’s universal periodic review in 2014, it was recommended that the Government take action to eliminate all the negative forces at work in the east of the country. The Committee on the Rights of the Child urged the Government to take measures to protect children from falling victim to armed conflict or participating in armed hostilities, and to punish those who have been involved in killing, maiming and recruiting children (see CRC/C/COD/CO/3-5, para. 18). 1. Current situation and action taken by the Government 33. In conflict areas, the Joint Human Rights Office has documented a significant increase in the number of violations and abuses of human rights. This increase is attributable, among other causes, to the proliferation of militias and armed groups, the aggravation and spread of their activities, and also to violations perpetrated by State officials, in particular during operations against armed groups. During the reporting period, State officials have committed significantly more violations in the conflict areas than the 6 7 6 In direct breach of the commitments entered into by the Government pursuant to Security Council resolution 2348 (2017) and the agreement between the United Nations and the Democratic Republic of the Congo concerning the status of the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) (4 May 2000) (which became MONUSCO on 1 July 2010), and the memorandum of understanding of 21 August 1996 on the establishment of a human rights office in Kinshasa. These include bills on the protection and accountability of human rights, on non-profit associations and public service institutions, on measures to uphold the right to demonstrate and on access to information. GE.18-13336