A/HRC/11/23 Page 4 servants of God [human individuals]” since remissness in regard to the rights of God is easier to remedy than violations of the rights of His servants. 9. The Islamic Shari’a shows special concern for the rights of special categories such as minorities and non-Muslims. The rule in this regard was laid down by the Messenger of Islam with the words: “They have the same rights and obligations as us”. 10. Saudi Arabia acknowledges that there are some human rights violations attributable to individual practices. Many of these violations fall within the context of domestic violence, to which confusion between the true Islamic Shari’a and customs and traditions is a contributing factor. In actual practice, the concept of guardianship, for example, often loses its connotation of responsibility and care, which are transformed into domination and coercion. 11. Women’s awareness of their rights has been considerably increased in recent years. 12. Many successful endeavours have been made to promote the rights of the child and of women, leading to tremendous achievements including: (a) Institution of mechanisms to prevent domestic violence, and promulgation of the Protection from Harm Act; (b) Formulation of a strategy for childhood, and promulgation of the Child Protection Act; (c) Promulgation and implementation of the Disabled Persons Act and the promulgation in the near future of a bill of law criminalizing all forms of domestic violence. 13. With regard to the judiciary, the Code of Criminal Procedure underwent a comprehensive review after the promulgation of the new Statutes of the Judiciary in order to make its provisions consistent with the greater independence of judges and codify procedures before the appellate courts and the Supreme Court in such a way as to confirm the two levels of judicial proceedings and make judgments subject to review by specialized divisions of higher courts. Further emphasis was placed on the principle of the presumptive innocence of the accused and account was taken of the recommendations made by the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers during his visit to the Kingdom from 20 to 27 October 2002. In its endeavours to maintain security, the Kingdom has also sought to achieve a balance between the requirements of the campaign against terrorism and the need to respect human rights. 14. In the Kingdom there are more than 1,000 civil-society and other institutions concerned with issues relating to the protection of human rights. The Consultative Council approved a legislative enactment regulating the activities of these institutions and guaranteeing their independent functioning. This enactment was studied in the light of the acts of violence and terrorism being perpetrated in the changing international situation and with a view to developing these institutions and increasing their number on the basis of the following main criteria: (a) The Basic Law of Governance guarantees freedom of private activity; (b) There must be a balance between rights and obligations; (c) There is a need to ensure that all restrictions imposed should be consistent with public law and order, the Kingdom’s international obligations and human rights standards.