A/HRC/44/39/Add.1 the religious and moral education of their children in conformity with their own convictions, as well as children’s rights to freedom of religion and belief, mean that all children, in all circumstances, should benefit from the possibility to opt out. 102. In addition, the Special Rapporteur underlines that, as mentioned by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in its general comment No. 21 (2009) on the right of everyone to take part in cultural life, “cultural life” is to be understood as “an explicit reference to culture as a living process, historical, dynamic and evolving, with a past, a present and a future. The concept of culture must be seen not as a series of isolated manifestations or hermetic compartments, but as an interactive process whereby individuals and communities, while preserving their specificities and purposes, give expression to the culture of humanity” (paras. 11–12). It is therefore important that, in its efforts to promote social values and cultural heritage, Qatar ensures the right of all persons to freely participate in cultural life, including the right to discuss, develop and reinterpret the meaning of cultural practices. Violence and corporal punishment 103. Almost all interlocutors denied the existence of corporal punishment in schools. They referred to the strict administrative rules and code of conduct on the matter, stressing that teachers would never dare exercise corporal punishment for fear of being fired. The Special Rapporteur, while welcoming such a strong position, encourages the Government to remain extremely attentive to the matter. She stresses that sometimes, such denial may also be a refusal to closely examine reality or to address an issue publicly. 104. The same is true regarding violence between students and bullying at school. According to some reports, there are cases of bullying, particularly among boys, which are addressed seriously at the school level, in cooperation with parents. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the initiative adopted by the Primary Health Care Corporation to launch a new project to assess more thoroughly the situation and to depart from an ad hoc response system to the development of coordinated policies and plans to address the matter. IV. Conclusions and recommendations 105. The Special Rapporteur congratulates Qatar for the significant efforts made on all fronts, with many projects under way, to address challenges and ensure the realization of the right to quality education for all. The country has established an educational system that seeks to accommodate the various needs and aspirations of diverse communities, Qatari and non-Qatari, in a particularly challenging context due to the high proportion of migrants in the country. 106. The Special Rapporteur appreciates the care taken in matters relating to the quality and safety of school infrastructure and in matters relating to school health; information and communication technologies made available in schools; the many programmes developed for the continuous training of teachers; the assistance provided to schools facing performance difficulties; the continuous efforts to reflect upon and improve the quality of education; the financial support provided for the establishment of community schools; and the systematic monitoring of teaching conditions in private schools. 107. Nevertheless, a number of important challenges remain, which should be addressed, bearing in mind the recent accession of Qatar to the two International Covenants on Human Rights. Availability 108. Qatar should be congratulated for maintaining and valuing its public schools. Nevertheless, the Special Rapporteur is concerned about what appears to be an increasing over-reliance on the role of the private sector, particularly when it comes to educating children of migrant workers. The limited availability of places in public 17