A/HRC/30/66 64. On 14 April, UNAMI/OHCHR visited al-Rusafa detention facility in Baghdad and subsequently sent recommendations to the Ministry of Justice on improving the conditions of detention. In June, UNAMI/OHCHR visited several detention facilities in Zakho, Dohuk Governorate, and raised concerns with relevant authorities regarding the conditions of detention at an Asayish facility. 65. In late April, in coordination with the management of al-Ma’aqal Prison in Basra, UNAMI/OHCHR held a seminar where experts from the University of Basra delivered presentations on prison management, treatment of detainees, and their reintegration into society. The experts discussed, inter alia, international legal standards applicable to persons deprived of their liberty and comparative best practices in prison management that could be adopted in Iraq. The participants included judges, prosecutors, prison officials, lawyers, journalists and representatives of non-governmental organizations. 3. Torture and other ill-treatment 66. UNAMI/OHCHR received allegations from detainees and prisoners that they had been subjected to torture and other ill-treatment. Through direct trial monitoring, UNAMI/OHCHR noted that courts often relied on confessions as the sole or most significant evidence upon which convictions are based, even where the accused person has claimed that the confession was induced through torture. 67. UNAMI/OHCHR has advocated to the Government to ensure that any allegations of torture or other ill-treatment are promptly and properly investigated. D. 1. National institutions National Human Rights Commissions 68. UNAMI/OHCHR began to advocate for the establishment of an Iraqi High Commission for Human Rights in compliance with the Paris Principles in 2004. The Commission was established by law No. 53 of 2008. 69. UNAMI/OHCHR, in partnership with the United Nations Office for Project Services and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in a project funded by the European Union, provided the Iraqi High Commission for Human Rights with support and technical advice. In May, UNAMI/OHCHR gave training courses to members of the Commission secretariat on the protection of civilians, State responsibility, accountability mechanisms and the role of the national human rights institution. In June, a training course was conducted on monitoring, investigating and reporting on human rights violations and abuses to more than 40 staff members of the Commission secretariat. 70. UNAMI/OHCHR, in partnership with UNDP, also supported the establishment and capacity-building of the Independent Board of Human Rights in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. UNAMI/OHCHR supported the creation of a database to facilitate informationgathering and analysis, and organized training courses on detention monitoring and the investigation and documentation of human rights violations. 71. On 3 November 2014, Iraq was reviewed for the second time by the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review. A total of 91 States made 229 recommendations on improving the human rights situation, of which the Government accepted 175. UNAMI/OHCHR provided the Government with technical assistance in the preparation of its State report, and also trained members of non-governmental organizations to assist in with the preparation of their stakeholder submissions. UNAMI/OHCHR furthermore provided technical support to a coalition of 29 representatives of non-governmental 13