A/HRC/11/15 Page 4 governments of the Länder and civil society are determined to tackle this. Recently, the Government has adopted a National Action Plan against Racism following the World Antidiscrimination Conference in 2001; (c) Given remaining imbalances in salaries between men and women and difficulties with reconciling work and career, ensuring gender equality remains a priority; (d) As regards human rights and terrorism, the delegation emphasized that fighting terrorism must not be detrimental to the respect for human rights, a principle that continues to be at the heart of the anti-terror policies of the Government; (e) Although a prosperous country, Germany needs to make continuous efforts to secure the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights. 8. Responding to advance questions, the delegation stated that the reform of the laws for foreigners and asylum-seekers has strengthened their rights. The law applies to those whose request for asylum has been turned down and who have lived in Germany for several years, offering them a right of residence which allows them to integrate into society and seek a permanent residence permit. Under the program, 55,000 resident permits have been granted, 8,000 applications are pending. Moreover, relevant EU Directives have been incorporated into German law. 9. Another major reform effort was the ‘German Islam Conference’ founded in 2006, which is the first official forum for dialogue with representatives of Muslim communities at the national level and aims at improving relations with the three million Muslims living in Germany. 10. Germany informed that an “Integration Summit” has the goal to improve the participation of migrants in civil society. As knowledge of the German language is essential for successful integration, the Government spent almost 170 million Euros for language and integration courses for migrants in 2008, including for those who have lived in Germany for many years. 11. Referring to a question about the right to education, Germany acknowledged that disadvantages for migrants persist and emphasized its efforts to have a full programme of preschool language courses for migrants in place by 2012. Furthermore, the cooperation with parents is being enhanced, provision of all-day schools expanded, and teacher training improved. 12. Germany stated that although the number of undocumented immigrants living in Germany is unknown, the Government is keen to ensure that they are treated with dignity. From fear of being deported, many are unwilling to disclose their status, which leads to problems regarding access to health as well as school education for children. Many illegal migrants do not send their children to school as they will risk disclosing the parents’ status. To address this problem, a revision of the law is suggested whereby schools will no longer need to report to immigration authorities. 13. Regarding the issues of forced marriages, forced prostitution and trafficking in human beings, Germany noted that it works towards improving the situation of victims, notably women, inter alia through witness protection programmes. Joint task forces between the Federal Government and the Länder on trafficking of women, on domestic violence and on forced evictions have been established. These problems including the sexual exploitation of children and child pornography through misuse of the internet are taken seriously. 14. Addressing an advance question on the right of residence for victims of forced marriages and forced evictions, the delegation explained that EU directives have been incorporated into German law in 2007. Victims of forced marriages have a right to return after having to leave the