A/HRC/23/31 be addressed. Most critical is the review of the transitional Constitution. In the year since the decree issued by the President of the Republic effectively forming the Constitutional Review Commission, progress in this process has been slow. Many civil society organizations and members of the public have voiced concerns about the lack of transparency and inclusiveness of the process. On 26 February 2013, the mandate of the Commission was extended to 31 December 2014. 39. Existing laws also need to be reviewed and harmonized with the human rights clauses of the transitional Constitution and international human rights standards. Some existing laws contradict each other on human rights-related issues; for example, traditional practices, such as early and forced marriage, wife inheritance and the denial of property inheritance by women, contravene provisions of the transitional Constitution. The criminal law system requires overall harmonization with the constitutional human rights standards. A number of bills with an impact on human rights, the most important of which include three bills on the media and on access to information, are pending before Parliament. Other bills pending include the Petroleum Revenue Management Bill, the Advocacy Bill and the National Security Service Bill. The latter will be particularly important in defining the security service’s powers of arrest. Civil society organizations and other individuals have raised a number of concerns about the Voluntary and Humanitarian Organizations Bill currently before Parliament for its first reading, which will regulate the operations of nongovernmental organizations. Those working on human rights and governance issues were particularly concerned that provisions of the bill would impede their work, for example through restrictions on receiving funding from international bodies. 40. The Government has committed to the ratification of all major international human rights treaties with a view to constructing a national legal framework to protect human rights. Preliminary steps in the ratification process have been taken for three of the priority instruments identified by the Government, namely the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Legal opinions for accession to these and the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees have been prepared in collaboration with the Human Rights Division of UNMISS and partner United Nations agencies. These opinions were submitted to the Council of Ministers on 17 May 2013, where they were approved and referred to Parliament. Discussions are also under way to launch the process for ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. With regard to regional human rights instruments, in January 2013, South Sudan signed (though is yet to ratify) the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. This was also included in the package of instruments approved by the Council of Ministers on 17 May 2013. 41. The adoption of the Refugee Act and the Geneva Conventions Act in 2012 marked important developments in strengthening the legal protection framework. South Sudan acceded to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and the Additional Protocols thereto after a bill was passed by Parliament on 16 July 2012. In addition, the Government informed the International Labour Organization in 2013 that it had accepted seven conventions, including those relating to forced labour, discrimination and the worst forms of child labour. 42. The Human Rights Division of UNMISS continues to provide technical assistance and support to build the capacity and expertise of the national and State assemblies through their relevant committees. At the request of Parliament, the Division will, at the end of May 2013, implement training activities for members of Parliament on the processes for the ratification of and accession to international human rights treaties, and subsequently for the harmonization of national legislation with international standards. The National Assembly, in accordance with its work plan for 2013, is seeking further technical and logistical 9