A/HRC/42/15 and Decree No. 21 of 2019, regulating conditions and procedures for the election of worker representatives in joint committees. 9. Qatar concluded a technical cooperation project, in October 2017 with ILO for the period 2018–2020, in which technical assistance was provided for the improvement of the wage protection system, enhancing labour inspection and occupational safety and health systems, implementing a contractual system to replace the kafalah sponsorship system, increasing prevention of forced labour and prosecuting the perpetrators. It had also signed 38 bilateral agreements and 14 memorandums of understanding with labour-exporting countries to provide legal protection for expatriate workers before their recruitment. It had furthermore established a safety committee for injured workers. 10. Qatar had established a committee to prepare a national action plan for human rights pursuant to a decision of the Council of Ministers at its ninth ordinary meeting of 2017, and the National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking pursuant to Council of Ministers Decree No. 15 of 2017. It had adopted Act No. 10 of 2018, concerning permanent residency; Act No. 11 of 2018, regulating political asylum; Act No. 13 of 2018, annulling the requirement for migrant workers to gain permission for departure; and Act No. 17 of 2018, establishing a support and insurance fund for migrant workers. 11. A strong effort had been made regarding the empowerment of women and their inclusion in all areas, including the legislature, in accordance with article 34 of the Constitution, under which the full political participation of women was encouraged. Four women had joined the Shura Council and a woman had been appointed as the official spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, thus becoming the first Qatari woman assigned to such a position. The country had continued its efforts to promote and protect the rights of children and persons with disabilities, as well as the rights to health and education. A national campaign on the right to education had been held from October 2018 to April 2019 as part of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s campaign to promote and protect the right to education. Qatar valued the importance of bilateral and multilateral cooperation, and had joined more than 328 Arab, regional and international organizations and entities operating in various fields. Qatar had striven to provide voluntary contributions to United Nations agencies, funds and programmes, benefiting approximately 100 of the Organization’s entities. 12. Qatar noted that its review had taken place while the country had continued to face a blockade, constituting unilateral coercive measures, by some States in the region and which had resulted in ongoing violations of human rights including freedom of movement, residency and private property, the rights to work, health and education, freedom of opinion and expression and freedom of belief, as well as violations of social rights such as through the separation of families. 13. OHCHR had sent a technical mission in November 2017 to assess the impact of the Gulf crisis on human rights. The mission team had concluded that the measures taken against Qatar had been broad and targeted individuals on the basis of their nationality or their links with Qatar, which could be qualified as disproportionate and discriminatory. The mission team had identified those measures as constituting core elements of the definition of unilateral coercive measures as proposed by the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee. 14. Qatar had brought claims to international forums, such as the International Court of Justice and the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, to preserve its rights and to ensure that the blockading States were held responsible for human rights infringements. The International Court of Justice had issued its ruling in regard of interim measures on 23 July 2018, ordering the reunification of Qatari families separated by the measures taken against Qatar. 3