A/HRC/30/14 40. Croatia had spent 5–6 billion euros on housing some 354,000 returnees, of whom about 130,000 were ethnic Serbs. Through the housing programme, 149,887 persons had been provided with houses and others with the material to restore their houses or were housed in another way. Some 480 people were still without a house or had the status of refugees. Regarding abandoned property given for use to other persons, all but 13 cases have been resolved, of which 7 were in the process of being resolved. 41. China commended Croatia for its constructive engagement with the universal periodic review. It also commended the adoption of the new Free Legal Aid Act, the Social Welfare Act 2014 and the four-year national policy for gender equality, to further improve and protect women’s rights to employment and health and to prevent domestic violence. It welcomed efforts on Roma rights and on developing the national strategy for Roma inclusion for 2013–2020. 42. Costa Rica commended Croatia for the progress made towards a fairer society in terms of access to power and for the law on gender equality, which promotes the participation of women elected to office. Costa Rica urged Croatia to strengthen human rights education programmes through the Croatia national programme. 43. Cuba appreciated the implementation of the National Programme for Protection and Promotion of Human Rights 2013–2016 and the National Policy for Gender Equality 2011– 2015; the establishment of the National Committee to Combat Violence in Sport; the adoption of the new Law on the Position and Jurisdiction of Courts and Law Jobs and the Jurisdiction of State Prosecutors. 44. Cyprus commended measures taken by the Government of Croatia to implement its international human rights obligations. It particularly welcomed the initiatives undertaken for the promotion of the rights of women and children, as well as measures taken for the elimination of all forms of discrimination. 45. The Czech Republic welcomed the delegation of Croatia and thanked it for its national report and appreciated the response to some of the advance questions. 46. Egypt acknowledged positive developments in institutional and legislative reforms and policy implementation. It welcomed the efforts to eliminate sexual violence, combat hate speech, enhance the availability and quality of legal aid in the context of the judicial system, upgrade the national human rights institution and combat and prevent torture and ill-treatment in detention centres. Egypt commended the strides made in ensuring better representation of women in public and political life. 47. Estonia noted the progress in the area of human rights and in the implementation of most recommendations and commended Croatia for implementing the policy suggestions made during the previous review. Estonia welcomed the entry into force of the Act on the Ombudsman and the adoption of the acts on asylum and anti-discrimination, among others. It acknowledged the ongoing endeavours to promote gender equality and stop discrimination against women. 48. France welcomed the ratification of the Hague Convention in December 2013 and efforts to grant to the victims of sexual violence during the 1991–1995 war the status of civilian victims of the conflict. France wished to know about measures to prevent and suppress hate speech and punish threats against journalists. 49. Georgia welcomed the ratification of the Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness and commended Croatia for its efforts to strengthen human rights protection at the national level. Georgia asked Croatia to provide information on how the correctional measures had been implemented towards juvenile criminal offenders. It noted the steps taken in respect of juvenile pretrial detention. 8

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