A/HRC/WG.6/1/BRA/4 page 8 36. The Republic of Korea praised the establishment of the three special secretariats on human rights, women issues and racial equality in 2003. It noted that a number of international human rights organizations have repeatedly drawn attention to human rights violations of indigenous people, to the lack of public security and poor detention conditions in Brazil. Thus, the Republic of Korea expected Brazil to give a more thorough consideration to these issues. 37. The Syrian Arab Republic requested that Brazil share its expertise and best practices regarding the implementation of its national programme to fight hunger and poverty. 38. France welcomed the strengthening of legal mechanisms for human rights protection since the 1988 Constitution. It also noted the considerable progress made regarding children’s rights, despite the remaining difficulties in large cities and the poorest states. However, France stressed the parliamentary proposals of constitutional amendment to lower the age of criminal responsibility. Referring to Brazil’s national report, France noted the action undertaken by the Government to combat the social pressure that calls for such reform. In this regard, France wished to know where the discussions will lead to. 39. Norway acknowledged that the construction of a democratic and rights-based society is a complex process requiring both political will and time. Norway particularly mentioned as example of best practices the Government’s efforts to combat child labour, the establishment of a ministry to combat racial discrimination, and Brazil’s leadership on issues of sexual orientation and gender identity. Regarding freedoms of opinion and expression, while noting the protection provided by the Constitution, Norway stated that it seems that the legislative bodies have failed to safeguard them properly. Referring to the stakeholders’ report, Norway further noted that lack of plurality and concentration of media ownership are reported. Norway noted that thousands of community broadcasters are waiting to be attributed a licence and journalists who cover investigations about corruption or irregular behaviour by public authorities are exposed to threats and physical aggression. On the basis of this information, Norway asked what actions the Government has taken or will take to set up a legal framework according to international standards to address the issue of concentration of media ownership, to speed up the attribution of licenses to community broadcasters, and to duly investigate cases of violence against media professionals. 40. In response to Peru’s question on the right to memory, Brazil referred to the 1995 Law 1140 on the accountability for the deaths that occurred under the dictatorship. The Law established the Commission on Political Disappearances to assess cases of politically motivated deaths under the dictatorship. Since then, out of 339 cases, 321 received compensation. In 2007, a special secretariat produced a report summarizing the process and events in each of those cases, recognizing the State’s responsibility for these disappearances. In 2007 the Special Secretariat on Human Rights and the Commission on Political Disappearances created a DNA bank to identify those who disappeared and were never located. The main challenges for the Commission are to locate and access the archives, since all the archives from the dictatorship period were transferred to the National Archives. 41. Brazil concurred with Slovenia, Azerbaijan and Colombia that violence against women and children is still taking place. However, two national plans have been designed in collaboration with civil society to reduce inequality and to mainstream gender issues in public policies. It is also modifying its legislation with regard to family violence and violence against women. Brazil noted that it is taking comprehensive actions in conjunction with state governments and municipalities to establish indicators whenever family violence occurs. This new initiative covers four areas including sexual exploitation and reproductive rights.