A/HRC/33/7 68. India welcomed the recent steps to combat racism, the adoption of the new action plan on gender equality and the plan to revamp the public benefit employment scheme. India requested further information on those issues and on steps taken to address the situation of undocumented migrants and asylum seekers. 69. Indonesia commended Greece for its efforts to promote human rights, despite the economic crisis, by ratifying the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and by the drafting national action plans. 70. The Islamic Republic of Iran welcomed the steps taken by Greece to mitigate the impact of the economic crisis and austerity measures on the most disadvantaged. 71. Iraq commended the achievements of Greece in the areas of women’s and children’s rights and called upon it to uphold human rights principles in addressing other challenges. 72. Ireland appreciated the challenges that Greece faced in responding to the needs of the unprecedented number of migrants and refugees. The crisis required close cooperation with the European Union, the United Nations and civil society. 73. Israel commended Greece for its efforts to alleviate the negative impact of the economic crisis and for its legislative framework to fight against racial discrimination, xenophobia and Holocaust denial. 74. Italy encouraged Greece to maintain its commitment to protecting economic, social and cultural rights while mitigating the effects of the economic crisis, and commended its assistance to migrants. 75. Greece noted that major reform to its asylum system had resulted in a process acknowledged to be of high quality and a recognition rate of approximately 50 per cent. Greece was currently receiving more asylum claims than wealthier European Union member States. Efforts to improve reception facilities were constant, especially for unaccompanied minors. Alternatives to detention were being implemented on the islands. 76. Greece highlighted that the child protection system was being restructured, with emphasis on developing support services for children and families, preventing institutionalization and reinforcing foster parenting, including for children with disabilities. In 2016, the number of children placed with families instead of in institutions was expected to be double that of previous years. A national strategy on social inclusion, which had been submitted to the European Commission, provided the foundations to tackle child poverty and a number of transfer payments and programmes were in place for families of children living in poverty. 77. Greece noted that the positive impact of some of its policies had been seen as most students with disabilities were currently being supported within mainstream programmes. 78. Greece stressed that racism was recognized as one of the most important issues affecting human rights in Greece and in many European and non-European countries. The delegation gave an overview of the challenges Greece faced in that regard and its responses in terms of legislation and State policy. 79. Greece stressed that one group of persons, the Muslim minority in Thrace, was considered to be a minority under the terms of the Treaty of Peace, signed at Lausanne, July 24, 1923. It consisted of three distinct groups of persons of Turkish, Pomak and Roma origin. Implementation of the Treaty was based on modern human rights standards. Greece fully respected the principle of individual self-identification, however, its position was that a State’s decision to recognize a group as a minority and provide its members with specific minority rights in addition to those in human rights treaties had to be based on objective 9