A/HRC/42/10 10. Children received free education under the 12-year compulsory education system. The position of women in all spheres of the State and public life had been strengthened, older persons were held in high esteem, and persons with disabilities were under the special care and protection of the State and society. 11. Periodic reports had been submitted to the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, which had conducted subsequent reviews. Upon the invitation of the State, the Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities had visited the country. 12. In its efforts to promote human rights, the country had faced obstacles, particularly the resolutions adopted by the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly. Those resolutions were politically motivated and a manifestation of selectivity and double standards. They were based on fabricated information whose sources were the false testimonies of “defectors”. 13. Sanctions imposed by the Security Council hampered State efforts to protect and promote human rights. They obstructed trade and blocked the delivery of medicines and medical appliances for children, women and persons with disabilities, and made it difficult for the United Nations agencies and humanitarian actors operating in the country to carry out their missions. B. Interactive dialogue and responses by the State under review 14. During the interactive dialogue, 88 delegations made statements. Recommendations made during the dialogue are to be found in section II of the present report. 15. Togo noted that the ratification of several international human rights instruments showed the willingness of the Government to promote and protect the human rights of all its citizens. 16. Turkmenistan commended the State for the establishment of the National Committee for the Implementation of the International Human Rights Treaties. 17. Ukraine regretted the unwillingness of the Government to cooperate with the United Nations bodies, in particular the Human Rights Council. 18. The United Kingdom remained deeply concerned by reports of ongoing, widespread and systematic human rights violations and urged immediate and unhindered access for human rights actors. 19. The United States was deeply concerned about the 80,000 to 120,000 individuals held in deplorable conditions in political prison camps. 20. Uruguay commended the State for the creation of the National Committee for the Implementation of the International Human Rights Treaties. 21. The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela noted that the unilateral coercive sanctions were obstructing the distribution of medicines and the provision of medical services to children, women and persons with disabilities. 22. Viet Nam commended the State for the establishment of the National Committee for the Protection of Persons with Disabilities, and the amendment of the Socialist Labour Law extending the period of maternity leave. 23. Zimbabwe noted that new laws had been enacted on vocational education, dissemination of science and technology, disaster prevention, relief and recovery, and welfare services. 24. Afghanistan remained concerned about the lack of cooperation with the human rights mechanisms of the Human Rights Council and the limitations in people’s access to their basic needs. 25. Algeria welcomed the adoption of laws on education and vocational training, and legislative reforms undertaken in the field of labour law. 3