A/HRC/38/5 8. The 2013 Education Act had established a new compulsory school age of 4 to18 years. Furthermore, it had imposed a legal duty on parents to educate their children, and had introduced the principle of inclusive education for children with special needs and the right of all children under the age of 19 years to have access to quality education in Tonga, irrespective of the child’s gender, religion, socioeconomic status, physical condition or location. 9. The Health Services Act 1991, the Medical and Dental Practice Act 2001, the Mental Health Act 2001 and the Public Health Act 2008 protected the rights of a person to have access to medical and health services in Tonga. The Ministry of Health was in the process of reviewing some of these legal provisions to ensure compatibility with international health standards. 10. In 2016, Tonga had become the 187th member of the International Labour Organization (ILO), thereby reflecting its commitment to promoting and ensuring a decent work environment and the progressive realization of international labour standards at the national level. An employment relations bill 2013 had been drafted and was in the process of full public consultation. 11. On the issue of ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, Tonga had announced that it was ready to ratify the Convention at the fifty-ninth session of the Commission on the Status of Women, held at United Nations Headquarters on 12 March 2015. However, due to public protests, Tonga had had to defer the ratification process for further consultation. Through targeted and strategic consultations, Tonga continued to move towards ratification. In addition, the underlying principles of the Convention were being addressed through projects linked to the commitments of Tonga to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. For Tonga, the ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women was an ongoing process and represented a generational change. 12. Tonga had a liberal maternity leave policy for public service employees, with three months’ paid maternity leave and five working days’ paternity leave. Tonga supported women’s economic empowerment activities through the identification of key women’s economic empowerment priorities in the National Community Development Plans, the sourcing of existing training opportunities and identification of funding as well as additional training as required. Furthermore, Tonga planned to develop an electronic registration system for community women’s development groups, strengthen networks and build partnerships between stakeholder groups and donors, and help female entrepreneurs to attend regional festivals and trade fairs. Women’s economic empowerment was a priority issue for Tonga. In its view, an important means for eradicating poverty was the provision of an environment that helped to ensure that women earned a decent income, were represented in both the formal and informal sectors and were given equal opportunities and education. 13. Tonga was implementing projects that addressed the issue of domestic violence, which had been identified as a major impediment to gender equality. 14. In May 2017, Tonga had conducted a holistic justice sector review and public consultation, which had led to the identification of projects to give women and children and vulnerable members of society and persons with disabilities better access to justice. 15. In December 2016, Tonga had set up a criminal policy Cabinet subcommittee to examine, analyse and address the issues of violence against vulnerable members of society, such as women, children, the elderly and persons with disabilities. 16. In Tonga, women and men generally received equal pay for equal employment levels, for instance within the public service. The Tongan Armed Forces had recently reviewed their employment policies to ensure gender equality. 17. Tonga had no discriminatory legislation in relation to the participation of women in politics. However, women were less successful in securing membership in the Legislative Assembly. For example, in 2014, 16 of the 106 candidates in the general elections had been women. In the 2017 elections, only 15 of the 86 candidates had been women. One of the identified weak areas related to their techniques in campaigning and lobbying for votes. 3