A/HRC/8/23 Page 6 the draft does not stop the process of harmonizing the principles and the legal substance of the draft, and pending its deliberation, Indonesia remains open to any constructive input providing expertise for the improvement of the Bill. Indonesia is also in the final stages of the establishment of a national institution for the protection of witnesses victims in order to guarantee the effective investigation and prosecution of certain crimes stipulated in the Bill. 16. Indonesia highlighted that the concept of crimes relating to religion and belief is also stipulated in the new Criminal Code Bill. As a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), Indonesia is in the process of harmonizing its laws, administrative practices and policies, including bringing the Criminal Code Bill into line with the principles of the ICCPR. Eight articles on crimes related to religion and belief have been incorporated into the Bill. 17. Many initiatives have been introduced at the community level based on the work of a prominent think-tank which in 2006-2007, conducted research into monitoring the situation of pluralist dynamics and freedom of religion in Indonesia. Their findings were used to identify the problems and challenges faced by Indonesia in the field of pluralism and freedom of religion, in particular threats to freedom of conscience and expression, in order to find possible solutions. Indonesia values this work highly and will work on these findings to improve the implementation of the rights guaranteed by the ICCPR, in line with the Government’s efforts to convene inter-faith dialogues. 18. National efforts to achieve full-fledged democracy are ongoing and will continue to be strengthened. In this regard, on 4 April 2008, the Freedom of Public Information Law which had been under deliberation in the House since 2004 was passed by Parliament. The law will take effect two years from the day it was passed, since its implementation will require some legal and technical infrastructures as reflected in one of the articles of the law, which stipulates the establishment of an information commission. The new law provides the concrete translation of articles 28 F and 28 J of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to information of all citizens. Initiatives on the drafting of this law were led by a group of 30 NGOs and a number of individuals who created the Coalition for Freedom of Information in November 2000. 19. Consistent with the second NHRAP, Indonesia will strengthen efforts to ratify the Optional Protocol of the Convention against Torture by 2009. In addition, Indonesia remains committed to the pledges and commitments made in support of its candidature to the Human Rights Council. In 2005, Indonesia withdrew its reservations to the Convention on the Rights of the Child with regard to seven articles (1, 14, 16, 17, 21, 22, and 29) of the Convention. B. Interactive dialogue and responses by the State under review 20. During the ensuing interactive dialogue, statements were made by the following delegations: 21. Thailand referred to Indonesia’s strategic role at the regional level, within ASEAN, in particular their role in the establishment of the ASEAN Human Rights body. It also noted Indonesia’s success in forging unity, harmony and tolerance in a pluralistic society and in a multi-party and multi-ethnic democracy. It noted that Indonesia, like many other countries, faces challenges that are being addressed through an ongoing process of reform in many areas. Noting the importance of the implementation of the National Action Plan on Human Rights, Thailand expressed interest in learning more from Indonesia’s experience in this regard, in particular the implementing agencies at national and regional levels. It sought Indonesia’s views on how to enhance the role of the national human rights institution and civil society in the implementation of the National Action Plan.