A/HRC/42/6 justice had raised women’s and girls’ awareness of the possibility of going to a legal clinic to report attacks on them, so that the perpetrators of such crimes could be prosecuted and convicted. With the same purpose in mind, and indeed to go a step further, the draft criminal code adopted by the Council of Ministers on 10 April 2019 explicitly defined rape and established marital rape and domestic violence as separate criminal offences. 63. With respect to the questions concerning national reconciliation and the 2020 presidential election, the Minister of State noted that, in order to ensure an inclusive, transparent and peaceful electoral process, the Government was continuing the political dialogue with the various stakeholders. It was also considering reform of the Independent Electoral Commission. To this end, the discussions initiated by the Government in January 2019 with political parties and groups and civil society organizations had led to the establishment of a committee. 64. With regard to freedom of expression, the Minister of State pointed out that article 19 of the Ivorian Constitution enshrined freedom of expression and guaranteed the right of everyone to express and disseminate their ideas freely. In addition, the Press Regulation Act of 2017 strengthened the principle of the decriminalization of press offences, as set forth in the Act of 2004, by excluding police custody, pretrial detention and prison sentences for offences committed using the press or any other means of publication. However, it was recalled that these freedoms had to be exercised with respect for the law, the rights of others, national security and public order. 65. On the question of the independence of the judiciary, the Minister of State explained that it was guaranteed by the Constitution, which explicitly proclaimed the independence of the judiciary and the principle of the irremovability of judges, who, in the performance of their duties, were subject only to the authority of the law. In order to bolster this independence, the High Council of the Judiciary would now be chaired by a senior judge, rather than the President of the Republic, as was previously the case. 66. With regard to the rights of children, the Minister of State recalled that Côte d’Ivoire was a party to the main international and regional instruments for the protection of those rights. Concerning the registration of information relating to civil status, especially births, several measures had been taken by Côte d’Ivoire in November 2018 to guarantee this right, namely the Civil Status Act and the law that established a special procedure for the declaration of births, the restoration of identity and the transcription of birth certificates. 67. With respect to the fight against trafficking in persons, modern slavery and forced labour, the Minister of State explained that, in 2017, the Ivorian Government had passed the Trafficking in Persons Act, which criminalized forced labour, modern slavery and commercial sexual exploitation, and the Smuggling of Migrants Act. Furthermore, the National Committee to Combat Trafficking in Persons had been established and was operational. 68. In terms of the national mechanisms responsible for implementation, reporting and monitoring, the Minister of State pointed out that Côte d’Ivoire had had such a mechanism in place since 2001, in the form of the Interministerial Committee Monitoring the Implementation of International Human Rights Instruments. The establishment of the Committee had made it possible to centralize information, facilitate its processing and enable the preparation and drafting of the present report under the universal periodic review process. 69. With regard to pretrial detention measures and the separation of children from adults in places of detention, the Minister of State noted that the first issue was being addressed by the Government, particularly with respect to bringing prison facilities into line with the aforementioned international instruments. With regard to the second issue, in Côte d’Ivoire, the rules of pretrial detention applicable to children were different from those applicable to adults. 70. Jordan congratulated Côte d’Ivoire on the adoption of its new Constitution. 71. Latvia encouraged Côte d’Ivoire to increase its efforts to fulfil its human rights obligations and commitments. 6 GE.19-11244