A/HRC/17/2 612. With regard to access to justice by all citizens, it was stressed that the services of the Legal Aid Institute had been extended and were accessible to 111 of 128 districts. In this regard, Mozambique had counted on a partnership with many civil society organizations and higher-level educational institutions. 613. Regarding the rights of women, the Government and several civil society organizations had paid special attention to this area, in the training of different stakeholders, legal assistance, and advocacy for the promotion of the defence of the rights of women. 614. Mozambique reiterated that extrajudicial executions were not institutionalized in the country. The death penalty was constitutionally forbidden and any action in that sense was punished. Cases of death involving the police or prison officers, when they occurred were properly investigated and the perpetrators held accountable, administratively and criminally. 615. Arrests of persons suspected of having committed crimes were made in accordance with the law, namely, within the scope of criminal liability. All criminal cases followed established legal procedures; on the basis of the independence of powers pursued by the State, the Executive could only monitor these cases at a distance. 616. With regard to the issue of sexual offences against children, Mozambique reiterated that such acts were defined as crimes in the Criminal Code, highlighting that the Code included the crimes of rape, and rape of a minor less than 12 years old, punishable by 2 to 8 and 8 to 12 years of imprisonment, respectively. The above-mentioned crimes were aggravated when combined with the crime of human trafficking. 617. The Criminal Code was being reviewed to better ensure the prevention and punishment of such crimes. 618. With regard to the recommendations made relating to the reduction of poverty, Mozambique stated that, generally, these are addressed by the plan of action for poverty reduction for 2011–2014. 619. Mozambique added that the Government had achieved significant progress in the reduction of poverty in the areas of education, health and access to basic services and infrastructures. These had been attained through the financing of various activities by a local initiative investment fund. It added that, recognizing an increase in urban poverty together with unemployment and low income in these areas, the Government had extended the initiative to urban districts through a strategic programme for urban poverty reduction. 620. Bilingual education was gradually being introduced and improved upon in the early years of primary education. The coverage of schools and students had grown from 23 schools and 1,500 students in 2003 to 198 schools and 47,174 students in 2010. In 2011, the Ministry of Education had expanded bilingual education to 318 schools, and expected effective cover at the end of the implementation of the new strategic plan of education for the period of 2012–2016. To ensure sustainable expansion and education quality, a number of actions were envisaged, including the training of teachers, the publication of books, supervision and monitoring. 621. The Ministry of Education had recognized that the existing instruction in diploma No. 39/2003 that established that pregnant girls should be transferred to night school should be improved upon. A team had been created to consult with relevant groups regarding the revision of this regulation. The same team was also examining strategies to better combat violence, harassment and sexual abuse, and was expected to present a draft document in 2011. 622. The recommendations that had not received the support of Mozambique had been carefully discussed and reviewed at the time. Two developments were highlighted. First, 176 GE.12-13630