A/HRC/38/12 46. Maldives commended Barbados for the establishment of the National Human Rights Coordinating Committee and noted with appreciation the efforts made in adopting the Domestic Violence (Protection Orders) (Amendment) Act and the Employment Sexual Harassment (Prevention) Act, 2017. 47. Mexico welcomed the ratification of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2013, which would extend the legal framework for the protection of that group of persons. Mexico recognized the work that had been done to realize the Sustainable Development Goals through a follow-up mechanism to measure the progress in their implementation. Mexico highlighted the efforts of Barbados to foster the capacity and technical assistance in the presentation of the reports of the national mechanisms for reporting and follow-up to the major international human rights instruments. 48. Montenegro welcomed the efforts to achieve high literacy rates among women and girls and gender parity in education, calling on Barbados to adopt legislation against discrimination on the basis of gender. It encouraged Barbados to intensify its cooperation with OHCHR and, if necessary, to seek technical assistance to fulfil its reporting obligations and harmonize its legislation with international human rights standards, particularly with the Convention on the Rights of the Child. 49. Morocco noted with satisfaction the efforts to ensure gender equality in education and to implement a plan to promote sustainable social and economic development and a regional project to improve access to justice. It also praised the measures taken by Barbados in order to ensure integration and protection of persons with disabilities by ratifying the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. 50. Mozambique welcomed the adoption of the Domestic Violence (Protection Orders) (Amendment) Act, programmes to combat intergenerational poverty focused on women and legislative instruments to align national laws with international human rights instruments. It also praised Barbados for the establishment of a family conflict prevention unit. 51. Namibia noted that Barbados remained committed to the promotion and protection of human rights regardless of the many challenges, such as the effects of climate change or lack of resources and capacity to implement policies and programmes. It welcomed efforts to establish the National Human Rights Coordinating Committee and to adopt the Domestic Violence (Protection Orders) (Amendment) Act and the Employment Sexual Harassment (Prevention) Act. 52. The Netherlands commended Barbados for the adoption of the Domestic Violence (Protection Orders) (Amendment) Act, expressing concern about the prevalence of genderbased violence, particularly domestic violence and sexual abuse. It noted that there seemed to be underreporting of gender-based violence cases and a lack of shelters for victims of that crime. 53. New Zealand praised Barbados for its commitment to abolishing the death penalty for murder, as well as the steps it had taken to establish a national committee for monitoring the rights of the child, and to ratifying the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It also welcomed the commitment by Barbados to reduce social inequalities through the Persons with Disabilities Bill. 54. Peru recognized the progress that had been made in the human rights situation. It praised Barbados for its efforts to implement the school programme on positive behaviour management and the campaign “Break the Silence”. It hoped that the current cycle would contribute to the improvement of human rights in the country. 55. The Philippines noted achievements in promoting an effective judiciary and freedom of speech and of the press, acknowledging the efforts to maintain an enabling environment for national and international human rights groups. It commended Barbados for its appropriate legislation on employment rights. 56. Portugal applauded the ratification of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and adoption of the Domestic Violence (Protection Orders) Act. 57. The Republic of Korea welcomed the expanded role of the National Human Rights Coordinating Committee in conducting research and working to establish a national human 6