A/HRC/17/2 680. The Administration had begun the preparation of the first human rights national plan, with the participation of all three branches of Government. 681. Regarding indigenous issues, the Government was working on the restitution of ancestral lands. In June 2011, 1,359 hectares of land had been transferred to indigenous families belonging to the Ava Guarani people. The Government was also committed to uphold the judgements of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights referring to indigenous communities in Paraguay. The issues were extremely complex and needed broad consensus. 682. The State was also promoting equality in the participation of women in elected and other public positions. At the time of the adoption of the report, an Ibero-American conference on gender and a panel discussion on parity were being held in Asunción. 683. In the following months, Paraguay would be examined by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and the Committee against Torture. Moreover, Paraguay had no pending reports before any United Nations treaty body, which showed the Government’s determination to live up to its international obligations. 684. Paraguay had extended a standing invitation to special procedures and received, in 2011, the visit of the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief. A Paraguayan delegation would participate in a regional consultation convened by the Special Rapporteur on torture, scheduled for late June 2011, in Santiago de Chile. 685. With regard to other international instruments, the Government had begun the process of acceding to the Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness; the aim was that Congress would ratify it before December 2011. This applied also to the amendment to article 20 of the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. 686. In April 2011, the first subregional meeting to follow up on the United Nations study on violence against children was held, resulting in the establishment of a national group on the prevention of violence against children, with public and civil society participation. 687. The delegation valued the role played by civil society during the preparation for the universal periodic review; the Government would continue to work with its representatives for the implementation of human rights policies. The Human Rights Network of the Executive Branch, coordinated by the Vice-Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, was very important in this endeavour and for its constant coordination with the judiciary. 688. Paraguay also acknowledged the cooperation provided by OHCHR through the appointment of a human rights adviser. 689. In concluding, the delegation restated Paraguay’s determination to respect without restrictions human rights international law. 2. Views expressed by Member and observer States of the Human Rights Council on the review outcome 690. Algeria was encouraged to note that the recommendations received, including its own, had been accepted by Paraguay or were being implemented. The recommendations accepted related to, inter alia, the implementation of a plan providing for a system of human rights indicators, response to the concerns of the citizens regarding education, the implementation of a plan establishing an institution to deal with questions concerning justice and human rights, and the extension of programmes to combat extreme poverty and improvement of the quality of life of the people. GE.12-13630 185

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