A/HRC/28/70 87. The Special Rapporteur reiterates his firm belief that the Government could significantly improve the country’s human rights situation by implementing recommendations made during both universal period review cycles and those made by the Secretary-General, the Commissioner for Human Rights, the treaty bodies and the special procedures. This includes reconsidering previously rejected recommendations to accede to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the two ILO conventions related to collective bargaining and the formation of unions. 88. High priority should be placed on amending laws and policies that undermine or violate internationally recognized rights and standards, and that therefore diminish the Government’s capacity to address concerns highlighted during the review and presented in the present and other reports produced by the human rights mechanisms. The Government should rescind laws that render as offences activities conducted to exercise legitimate rights under international law, including any laws that restrict the press, criminalize expression, limit access to information and give rise to the ongoing arrests of civil society actors and members of vulnerable groups, including religious and ethnic minorities, as well as laws that apply the death penalty to offences, such as drug-trafficking, that are not considered to be “most serious crimes” under international law. Moreover, the mandatory use of the death penalty is not compatible with the fair trial safeguards required under international law for the application of the death penalty73 and should be reconsidered. 89. Authorities should immediately rescind the death sentences against all political prisoners and prisoners of conscience, including those of Soheil Arabi and others, whose alleged actions do not constitute a serious crime under international law. The Government should also note that international law and consensus define juvenile execution as the execution of individuals who were under the age of 18 at the time of the commission of the relevant crime, not at the time of implementation of the sentence. He reiterates his call on the Government to officially ban this practice and to align its practices with its obligations under international law. He repeats his call to enforce a complete moratorium on the death penalty in the meantime. These actions could drastically reduce executions for non-capital offences and better ensure protections for the right to life. 90. The Government should also expedite the removal of landmines and explosives that continue to pose a threat to the lives and security of populations located in their vicinity, enhance provisions for public education, particularly for at-risk children, and ensure immediate and non-discriminatory access to adequate medical treatment and pension programmes for victims and their families.74 91. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the release of political prisoners and prisoners of conscience, but remains concerned about the initial cause for their prosecution. He echoes the renewed concern of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders about the Government’s overly broad 73 74 See the report of the Secretary-General on capital punishment and implementation of the safeguards guaranteeing protection of the rights of those facing the death penalty (E/2010/10 and Corr.1) for a detailed discussion on the relevant human rights jurisprudence. Ιn areas where landmines pose a threat to the safety of children, investment must be made to ensure the complete clearing of landmines and cluster bombs from all affected areas. See Committee on the Rights of the Child, general comment No. 17 (2013) on the right of the child to rest, leisure, play, recreational activities, cultural life and the arts, para. 57 (e). 21