A/HRC/11/L.10 page 143 number of core areas of concern that it had raised with the Government, including harassment and intimidation of human rights defenders, violation of freedom of assembly, politically motivated arrests and prosecutions, and torture and ill-treatment in police custody. Improvements were even more acutely needed in the field of media freedom, which have steadily deteriorated over the past few years because of, inter alia, the use of criminal libel and other criminal charges to stifle critical reporting and imprison journalists. It urged the Government to accept and implement all recommendations from the review process, particularly in the area of media freedom. Specifically, it should release journalists imprisoned on politically motivated charges immediately and decriminalize libel. 588. Cercle de recherche sur les droits et les devoirs de la personne humaine expressed its appreciation for the ongoing reform process in the field of human rights and encouraged Azerbaijan to continue in that direction, in spite of the ongoing conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, which it condemned, as well as the Armenian occupying forces. Through its plans to establish an office in the country in the future, it would continue to support Azerbaijan in the implementation of its international commitments and obligations. 589. The Federation for Women and Family Planning commended Azerbaijan for its commitment to gender equality. With regard to recommendations in paragraphs 69 and 90 of the Working Group report, it stressed the importance of addressing sexual harassment. In this regard, it called on Azerbaijan to conduct research and public awareness campaigns, put in place structures for reporting rape, train law-enforcement personnel and implement strong measures against corruption. It also called for education campaigns about gender roles and the value of women and girls, to reduce sex-selective abortions and protect women’s rights. It called on Azerbaijan to consider recommendations 26 and 48, to train law enforcement and judicial officials on the protection of children, women and persons of minority sexual orientation or gender identity. It called for proper investigations into claims of police blackmailing, harassment and violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and for the punishment of those responsible, as well as administrative and legal frameworks to eradicate such practices. It requested that Azerbaijan ensure that non-governmental organizations, including those supporting vulnerable groups, were free to register and operate without State interference or fear of reprisals.