A/HRC/25/6 8. The Government had maintained a rights-based approach to economic management which was pro-poor and gender-sensitive, and which was reflected in the economic transformation blueprint tagged Nigeria Vision 20:2020. 9. The Government was committed to improving access to affordable housing through legal and policy frameworks, which had increased the number of prototype housing units constructed by 151.17 per cent between 2011 and 2012. 10. The Federal Justice Sector Reform Coordinating Committee had been mandated to coordinate the development, management and implementation of policies aimed, inter alia, at improving the delivery of justice services. Furthermore, an Administration of Criminal Justice Bill was before the National Assembly. That bill was intended to institutionalize the broad objective of the proposed national prosecution policy. 11. Terrorism and violent insurgency had posed existential threats. Those threats, which were externally induced, had manifested themselves in activities by militant insurgents and organized crime groups who had committed atrocities, crimes against humanity and violations of human rights. In order to address the problem, constitutional measures had been adopted that included the declaration of a state of emergency in the States of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe in north-east Nigeria, where the insurgents had their base and carried out their attacks. A joint task force and a special task force had been deployed, with the required legislative authorization to utilize rights-based rules of engagement and operational plans in combating the insurgency. The Government had established a committee on dialogue and reconciliation that aimed to provide incentives to dissuade terrorists and other extremists from violence. 12. Significant efforts had been made to implement the accepted recommendations, and the efforts made in that regard constituted a substantial part of Nigeria’s national report. 13. Responding to the questions prepared in advance, the delegation emphasized that torture, as a means of extracting information from suspects, had no place in law enforcement. The police had been retrained and were now relying on modern and scientific means of interrogation. Police officers found to have committed extrajudicial executions were usually dismissed from service and prosecuted in accordance with the law. 14. The demolition of illegal structures in various parts of the country had been embarked upon in the public interest. The affected structures were those that had been erected without the permission of the relevant authorities and that were therefore not in conformity with the master plan for those areas. Experts had warned that the continuing existence of those illegal structures posed a danger, not only to the lives of the inhabitants of such areas, but also to the ecosystem. The authorities had carried out verification exercises to ensure that those who had genuine claims were either compensated, or were relocated to other areas and provided with alternative shelter. 15. With regard to what was being done to ensure that the fight against terrorism was carried out in accordance with international standards, the delegation stated that despite the difficult circumstances generated by terrorism, the country’s law enforcement agencies had been instructed to observe human rights while countering acts of terror. 16. The issue of sexual orientation did not enjoy consensus within the United Nations human rights system, and all attempts to integrate sexual orientation into existing universally recognized human rights had so far failed. The overwhelming majority of Nigerians objected to same-sex relationships, on the basis of their deeply held religious, cultural and moral beliefs, against which no government could successfully legislate. There was no policy or practice of witch-hunting people on the basis of their sexual orientation. 17. Nigeria was mindful of the need to protect the rights of women, as well as of disadvantaged groups such as orphans, widows, the disabled, mentally incapacitated 4