A/HRC/22/11 8. Democracy ensured the responsibility and engagement of citizens. The Swiss democratic system encouraged dialogue and the search for solutions by consensus, with due regard to the concerns of minorities. 9. The rule of law served as a guarantee for fundamental freedoms, and all efforts were taken to preserve and strengthen it. An important step in the unification of laws had been the entry into force, in January 2011, of several laws and codes of procedure at the federal level, which had replaced corresponding laws of the cantons. These federal laws, which included in particular the Criminal Procedure Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure in Juvenile Justice, and the Civil Procedure Code, constituted a further step in strengthening equality before the law, predictability in the judicial system and human rights protection. 10. The third principle, federalism, meant that authority was distributed according to the principle of subsidiarity. Thus, it was not the Central State which gave directives to the regions, but rather the different cantons of which the Confederation was composed which delegated competencies to the Federal State. In this way, public functions were executed at the communal and cantonal levels, which brought the State close to the citizens and facilitated dialogue between them and the authorities. The interests of different groups could thus be taken into account, with due respect for minorities. Federalism and the protection of minorities were the institutional expression of the cultural, linguistic and religious diversity of Switzerland. 11. Finally, the principle of solidarity alluded to the social functions of the State. It was reflected in the preamble of the Constitution, which provided that “the strength of the community is measured by the well-being of its weakest members”. The social responsibility of the State thus implied a commitment in favour of the most vulnerable individuals, as well as policies promoting job creation and countering exclusion. 12. Concerning the commitments made by Switzerland during the first cycle, the delegation referred to the completed ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT) and the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (OP-CEDAW). In addition, a number of ratification procedures were currently under way, including with regard to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (CPED), and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). 13. Switzerland also recognized the importance of giving individuals recourse to complaints mechanisms. Complaints on rights violations could be brought before the European Court of Human Rights as well as before the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) and Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). Where violations were found, measures had been taken to avoid their reoccurrence. 14. In addition to existing official and independent consultative mechanisms at the federal and cantonal levels, two new institutions had been created in 2010 and 2011, namely the National Commission for the Prevention of Torture and the Swiss Resource Centre for Human Rights. The establishment of the latter institution had been undertaken with a view to creating a national human rights institutions conforming to the Paris Principles, on which a decision would be taken by the Federal Council after completion of the pilot phase in 2015. 15. With regard to racial discrimination, the delegation noted that Switzerland followed an integration policy that included active measures against all forms of discrimination. Thus, by 2014, integration and anti-discrimination programmes had been developed in all cantons. The access of victims to judicial protection is a central element of this 4