A/HRC/31/4 7. The head of the delegation noted that the Federated States of Micronesia was a federation comprised of four autonomous States: Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei and Yap, with Pohnpei State being the seat of the Government. 8. She stated that the Constitution was the supreme law of the land, which guaranteed the rights to life, liberty, equal protection and due process of the law. It also guaranteed non-discrimination, especially on the basis of sex, race, ancestry, national origin, language or social status, as well as the right to property. It provided for freedoms of expression, peaceful assembly, association, petition, non-establishment of religion and its free exercise. It protected the rights of persons with disabilities, the rights of defendants through the presumption of innocence, and the right against self-incrimination and double jeopardy. It also prohibited capital punishment. 9. She emphasized that the Federated States of Micronesia was a young nation with a population estimated to be 102,000. There were 607 islands in total, 76 inhabited islands and 531 uninhabited islands spread over a longitudinal distance of approximately 1,549 nautical miles, just north of the equator. The widely dispersed islands presented a unique challenge to governance and service delivery. 10. She emphasized that since the previous review, the Government had made every effort to review the remaining core human rights treaties. The treaty ratification and implementation process continued to be a challenge for the Government, not only with human rights treaties but with any treaty deemed important to the nation. The reporting and financial obligations would continue to command the attention of the Federated States of Micronesia; the country had learned from experience about the importance of a bottom-up approach, which was naturally slow but ensured that the work was comprehensive and inclusive. 11. She informed the Council that the Federated States of Micronesia had completed the ratification process for the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict and had submitted its report under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Part of the reservation to that Convention concerning maternity leave had been addressed through Public Law 16-15, which provided that the national Government granted paid maternity leave of up to six weeks. The Family Health and Safety Study had been completed, the Child Protection Baseline Report had been launched, Chuuk State had passed the Age of Consent Law, the Nationwide Integrated Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Policy and the Trafficking in Persons Act had been adopted and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities had been signed. 12. She highlighted the fact that the role of women in society continued to evolve. The Federated States of Micronesia had seen a number of women in the highest positions in the public service and thus involved in decision-making. Women continued to be prominent in the private sector. Women were more visible at the state and municipal levels, where the direct impacts of their positive influence were felt at the grass-roots level. 13. She added that in 2015, a number of women had contested seats in the national Congress. Temporary special measures had become a topic of discussion at the biannual Women’s Conferences and among the members of the national Congress in public hearings at which the issue had first been introduced, then taken up in subsequent years. The issue would continue to be a topic of much debate among the women of the Federated States of Micronesia. Public awareness campaigns about the importance of women’s participation and contribution to decision-making in all branches and at all levels of government and society would be an ongoing activity. 14. She noted that in September 2015, the international community had adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, envisioned to be transformative and to leave no 4