A/HRC/24/13 modifications regarding transparency and financial activities had been made to the law on registration so as to improve the activities of NGOs. 52. Referring to allegations that the Ministry of Justice had attempted to close down NGOs, it was noted that in the course of the last 12 years, the Ministry of Justice had approached the Court in only about four cases to request that NGOs be closed down. All of these instances took place in response to grave violations of Azerbaijan’s legislation. Over 300 NGOs are currently working successfully with no restrictions in the area of human rights defenders. 53. In response to questions regarding conditions of detention and living conditions in prisons, Azerbaijan stated that great efforts have been made to modernize the infrastructure of the penitentiary system. In several regions of Azerbaijan, new penitentiary establishments have been built, legislation has been amended to improve detention conditions of detainees and increase their rights. Furthermore, based on a partnership agreement with the World Bank, Azerbaijan is working to improve the whole infrastructure of the judiciary. Some 20 new buildings for the judiciary will be built in the near future. Furthermore, over the last two years, eight new court buildings have been built and modern technology, such as the Internet, has been made available to the whole judicial system. Citizens can now find out what kinds of hearings are going to be heard by whom, as well as all the necessary information through the Internet. 54. Concerning freedom of assembly, Azerbaijan stated that the amendments adopted in 2009 to the law on freedom of assembly had been prepared together with the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe. It added that the Commission considered that the final text of the law was fully in compliance with European standards in this field. The law takes into account the full range of the principles and norms of international law and case law of the European Court of Human Rights on the protection of freedom of assembly. 55. Azerbaijan also mentioned reference by one delegation to restrictions on freedom of assembly, in particular a local authorities’ refusal to allow a demonstration to be held in the capital. It explained that the law provides for demonstrations to be held in certain specific places, which are published by the local authorities, as well as for the possibility of filing complaints and appealing decisions. It noted that none of the decisions by local authorities had been appealed. 56. Concerning the defamation law, the legislation of Azerbaijan is in full compliance with international standards. An analysis carried out of similar laws in European states found that sanctions provided for in the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan are in line with similar sanctions in other member states of the Council of Europe. There are still some deficiencies in the practical approach of the judiciary in the interpretation of the said law. It has therefore been decided to propose a draft text for a new law which will comprise all relevant international principles and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. The draft text was submitted to the Venice Commission last year and comments on the text are expected soon. 57. Azerbaijan also highlighted that a new law had been adopted on the rights and freedoms of persons in prison and pretrial detention. This is an important step in the fight against ill-treatment in places of pretrial detention, as it incorporates many principles of international instruments, in particular minimum standard rules on the treatment of prisoners. 58. Azerbaijan provided detailed information on the presidential election scheduled to take place at the end of this year. It noted that relevant bodies are carrying out different projects in preparation for the forthcoming elections, including educating the different electoral actors, such as voters, co-workers, observers, mass media, among others. It stressed the participation of national and international observers in the process and provided 9