A/HRC/21/8 service, during or after it. A claim of conscientious objection is valid without inquiry. Nonmilitary service is organized in such a way that the service duties do not conflict with the conviction of the person. Service is as long as the longest period of military service. A person who refuses to perform any type of service will be sentenced to imprisonment - the duration of which is half of the remaining service period and at the most six months. On the basis of the new Monitoring Sentences Act, those who have refused all kinds of service may be sentenced to house arrest, which will be electronically supervised, instead of unconditional imprisonment. Finland has been planning to reduce the duration of both military and non-military service by 15 days. 15. Several measures have been taken to alleviate the excessive length of judicial proceedings, including streamlining procedures and reallocating resources. Finland is also examining the possible introduction of plea bargaining. In 2010, a new law entered into force to guarantee compensation in cases where delays in judicial proceedings have taken place. 16. The delegation reassured Finland’s commitment to full and effective implementation of the 1951 Geneva Convention related to the status of refugees and to respecting the principle of non-refoulement. When assessing the reasons for persecution, the Finnish Immigration Service took into account, inter alia, certain factors such as sexual orientation. According to the recent decision of the Supreme Administrative Court, asylum cannot be denied even if the person could have avoided persecution in his home country by hiding his sexual orientation. 17. The delegation reported that the Government approved the first national Human Rights Action Plan, which defines concrete measures for the next two years. B. Interactive dialogue and responses by the State under review 18. During the interactive dialogue, 42 delegations made statements. Recommendations made during the dialogue are to be found in section II of the present report. 19. Malaysia noted that Finland continued to face challenges in combating racism, intolerance and xenophobia, which was evident in the increase in racist and xenophobic incidents and the growing xenophobic attitudes in Finnish society. Malaysia also raised concerns that despite the obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) the media and advertising in Finland were becoming increasingly pornographic and reinforced the existing stereotypes of women and girls’ low self- esteem. Malaysia made recommendations. 20. Mexico noted the new integration and anti-discrimination policies for immigrants. It also noted the entry into force of provisions to prevent racism, intolerance and xenophobia through information technologies. Mexico expressed its belief that the new interinstitutional programme to reduce violence against women would provide a good basis to prevent violence against women, protect and support victims and bring perpetrators to justice. Mexico made recommendations. 21. Morocco praised Finland’s efforts to prevent violence against women and encouraged it to continue reducing the high level of homicide. Morocco supported Finland’s efforts to combat racism and xenophobia particularly on the Internet. It inquired about the bill on reviewing the provisions on detention of foreigners. Morocco requested information about the progress made in the negotiations with Sweden and Norway on the Nordic Convention on the status of the Sami, as indigenous peoples. Morocco made a recommendation. 5