A/HRC/15/46 Minister. Many of them seem to be desperate for justice and even approached the Special Rapporteur during his visits. 8. The situation of human rights in Cambodia has been the subject of extensive analysis by successive country mandate holders since 1993, particularly in the area of the judiciary. This report seeks to build on their work. Although Cambodia is a forwardlooking society which has made great strides in strengthening human rights in recent years, it faces a number of challenges such as those relating to capacity, financial constraints, political will and the effectiveness of State institutions in improving the situation of human rights. This is especially true of the judiciary, whose independence is critical in the enjoyment of human rights by the people. It is an area where a great deal still remains to be done. II. Working methodology and approach 9. The Special Rapporteur and the Government agreed to look at the workings and effectiveness of State institutions responsible for promoting and protecting the rule of law and addressing human rights issues, including the Parliament, the judiciary, the Constitutional Council, the Supreme Council of Magistracy, the electoral commission, the law-enforcement agencies, and the governmental Cambodian Human Rights Committee. The purpose of this assessment is to identify the ways and means of strengthening their capacity to protect and promote human rights. Accordingly, during his mission in June 2010, the Special Rapporteur focused his work on the judiciary. 10. During his visit, the Special Rapporteur met with the President and other members of the Constitutional Council, the President of the Supreme Court, the President of the Court of Appeal, the Prosecutor General of the Court of Appeal, the President and other members of the Cambodian Bar Association, other high-level government officials and members of the judiciary. He also met with victims of human rights violations, including indigenous groups and communities affected by land evictions in the recent past and interacted with representatives of civil society working in legal and judicial reforms. The Special Rapporteur had the great honour to be received by King Norodom Sihamoni. 11. The Special Rapporteur visited the Kandal Provincial Court and observed the court proceedings. He also visited the Court of Appeal in Phnom Penh and the Battambang Provincial Court during his mission in January 2010 and interacted with the President and Prosecutor General of the courts. During his mission in June 2010, he visited the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) and interacted with a trial judge, co-investigating judges, co-prosecutors and other senior court officials. He also visited the detention centre where the five individuals indicted by the ECCC were held. III. Recent developments in human rights and rule of law 12. The Special Rapporteur is pleased to report notable advances made in the area of human rights and rule of law in Cambodia since his first visit in January 2009, which include the strengthening of the legal framework to manage the issue of urban evictions and relocations; the completion of the first case at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia and its verdict on 26 July 2010, as well as good progress on the investigations of the subsequent cases; continued effort to reform the prison system; and a clearer regime for public demonstrations. 13. The Government accelerated the legislative process in a number of areas designed to strengthen the system of justice in the country. Four new major laws with direct impact on human rights were enacted by the National Assembly of Cambodia during the period of 4