A/HRC/9/15 page 10 poor prisoners who cannot afford the services of defence counsel, lack of sufficient courts to handle cases and a shortage of prosecutors. The common call from detainees during the visit of the independent expert was simply that they wanted to go to court. Failure to observe the legal and procedural guarantees for pretrial detainees is a serious challenge to respect for human rights in prisons. 21. The independent expert was deeply concerned at the degree to which the norms for the protection of persons accused of crime, and deprived of liberty by the authorities, have not been respected. In particular access to medical and mental health care was woefully inadequate. Failure to respect and protect basic rights leads to tension within the prison population and given the high ratio of prison staff to detainees (1:22) this is effectively also a security issue. 22. A holistic approach, which seeks to address all components of the criminal justice system, must be taken if the situation in the corrections sector in Liberia is to be effectively tackled. Such an approach would demand training for prosecutors who, some interlocutors felt, were too slow in prosecuting cases but were also guilty of proceeding with charges where insufficient evidence existed. Thus, individuals who should not be deprived of their liberty are entering the criminal justice system. Such individuals are remanded and then unnecessarily held in pretrial detention. Their cases are not being processed through the court system in a timely manner. 23. Unless the deficiencies in the rule of law are addressed, including those identified above, impunity will not be successfully tackled. This is currently one of the greatest challenges facing Liberia today. IV. PROMOTION AND PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS A. Human rights of women 24. Rape and sexual violence remain the most frequently committed serious crimes in Liberia. In addition most health facilities are inaccessible to victims who seek comprehensive emergency care and available facilities are not sufficiently equipped and lack adequate drugs, medical supplies and health professionals trained in the clinical and psychological management of victims of gender-based violence. There has been no significant improvement in the weak implementation of the revised provisions of the criminal code related to rape, which came into effect in January 2006, as reported in earlier reports.2 25. However a lot of good work is being done by the Government of Liberia, together with UNMIL, in this area. The awareness campaign launched jointly by the Government of Liberia and UNMIL in December 2007 has led to an increase in the reported incidents of rape and this effort is likely to be further strengthened by the planned dissemination of the relevant provisions of the penal code on rape and sexual violence. Furthermore the national action plan on gender-based violence is to be supported by a four-year joint United Nations/Government programme. Assistance for the establishment of a special unit within the Ministry of Justice to prosecute gender and sexual violence cases, accompanied by appropriate capacity-building 2 A/HRC/4/6 and A/HRC/7/67.