A/HRC/17/29 the need for their fulfillment. As described below, equality and non-discrimination are fundamental human rights principles or obligations, and concerns regarding equality of opportunity in education are common to almost all international human rights treaties. Given the centrality of the principle for States, international human rights mechanisms have developed important guidance with regard to the establishment of legal and policy instruments to ensuring equal opportunities in education. IV. Human rights standards and political commitments regarding equality of opportunity in education 21. Promoting and protecting the right to education and promoting equality and nondiscrimination are clearly interrelated duties in accordance with human rights norms. The decisions of several human rights bodies recognize the central role of education in ensuring the enjoyment of an equal protection of other human rights. A. International human rights treaties 22. Equality of opportunity in education permeates most human rights treaties. As mentioned above, article 13 of the International Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights clearly establishes every person’s right to free primary education, and State responsibilities to achieve the progressive realization of this right with respect to secondary education, and for higher education, on the basis of capacity. The Convention further indicates that fundamental education should be provided as far as possible for those who have not received or completed the whole period of their primary education. 23. The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights details the core content and the obligations related to the right to education in its general comment No. 1315. It indicates that States have the principal responsibility for the direct provision of education, with core obligations clearly related to the principle of equality of opportunity, to ensure the right of access to public educational institutions and programmes on a non-discriminatory basis, and to provide primary education for all in accordance with article 13 (2) (a). 24. General comment No. 13 dedicates one section to the obligations related to the principles of non-discrimination and equality. The prohibition against discrimination “applies fully and immediately to all aspects of education and encompasses all internationally prohibited grounds of discrimination”. It further stipulates that “the adoption of temporary special measures intended to bring about de facto equality for men and women and for disadvantaged groups is not a violation of the right to non-discrimination with regard to education, so long as such measures do not lead to the maintenance of unequal or separate standards for different groups, and provided they are not continued after the objectives for which they were taken have been achieved”. It also indicates that “sharp disparities in spending policies that result in differing qualities of education for persons residing in different geographic locations may constitute discrimination under the Covenant.” Further, “States parties must closely monitor education –including all relevant policies, institutions, programmes, spending patterns and other practices – so as to identify and take measures to redress any de facto discrimination.”16 25. Article 28 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child enshrines the right of every child to education on the basis of equal opportunity. The Committee on the Rights of the 15 16 8 CESCR, general comment No. 13 (1999). Ibid., paras. 34 and 37.