A/HRC/29/11 some acts and reducing sentences for others; the introduction of a probation system; and reducing trial lengths. 8. Having highlighted the 2012 National Strategy on Human Rights Protection, he said that, in 2014, a related plan of action had been approved and a working group had been established to coordinate its implementation. Thematic plans had been approved in many fields. 9. The Commission on Constitutional Reforms of Armenia had been formed in 2013 and the Council on Women’s Issues had been reorganized into a national mechanism for the implementation of the gender equality policy in 2014. The Law on ensuring equal rights for women and men had been adopted in 2013 and the development of the relevant policy for its monitoring and effective implementation was in process. 10. The Office of the Ombudsman in Armenia had been confirmed as having “A” status in 2013 and the Government had increased its budget every year, thus guaranteeing the operation of its Rapid Response Service and regional offices. Armenia had signed or ratified a number of international instruments during the review period, including the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICPPED) and the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (ICRMW). Ratification of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) might be possible when the relevant issues had been addressed in the constitutional reform process. 11. The Armenian Ombudsman had been assigned the task of setting up the national preventive mechanism in compliance with the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OP-CAT). Since 2012, civil society representatives had been also been involved in the Council for the Prevention of Torture, and collaboration with the police had resolved some specific issues. Amendments to the Criminal Code had been submitted for approval to bring national legislation criminalizing torture into conformity with article 1 of the Convention against Torture. 12. The Law on public service had been adopted in 2011. The quality of democracy was predicated on the scale of women’s civic and political participation and their involvement in decision-making. Article 108.2 of the Electoral Code represented an improvement to gender balance requirements, in particular as it established quotas for women’s participation, unlike previous legislation. A working group had been established, which had studied and offered a comprehensive action plan for the implementation of recommendations presented by the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe following the 2012 Parliamentary and 2013 Presidential elections. 13. Combating corruption was one of the priorities of the Government of Armenia. A number of relevant measures had been taken, including the establishment of the AntiCorruption Strategy and action plan, and cooperation with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and the Council of Europe Group of States against Corruption, which had concluded that Armenia had fulfilled the 19 recommendations contained in its 2014 report. State policy also included the active participation of civil society and individuals in anti-corruption programmes. 14. The number of children in detention had fallen steadily in recent years. Armenia currently had one of the lowest numbers of detained children in the region. A strategic programme for the protection of the rights of the child for 2013–2016 and a timetable for the related measures had been approved in December 2012. The measures included drawing up strategies to combat violence against children. 4