A/HRC/49/15 33. Maldives commended Antigua and Barbuda for its leadership in the area of environmental commitments, including the ban on single-use plastics, and applauded the State’s commitment to bring its net emissions down to zero by 2050. Those commitments were ambitious steps forward in protecting the environment for future generations. 34. Responding to the interventions, Antigua and Barbuda provided reassurance that executions had not taken place since the 1980s. The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, in its most recent practice direction and sentencing guidelines on the matter (2020), had established the threshold of violence necessary for consideration of the death penalty, requiring the crime in question to be “the worst of the worst” and “the rarest of the rare”. 35. Antigua and Barbuda declared that the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex community was not severely discriminated against. Many well-known personalities belonging to that community lived and worked freely among others. The Constitution prohibited any discrimination based on gender, sex or creed. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons were treated equally before criminal tribunals and afforded the same protection. While the prohibition of same-sex relations remained enshrined in the law, it had never been invoked in the case of same-sex consenting adults, but in cases of offences against minors only. Considering the State’s strongly Christian-based society, the removal of that legal provision would take time and would need long-term awareness-raising among the whole population. 36. On violence against women, the Directorate of Gender Affairs assisted victims of gender-based violence and worked with the Ministry of Education to raise awareness among boys and girls in schools about domestic violence. Victims had been given support, including through a victim support helpline. Since the amendments introduced through the Domestic Violence Act in 2015, reported cases of domestic violence had increased, meaning that access to reporting mechanisms had improved. The police, the judiciary, prosecutors and attorneys received significant training on how to handle cases of domestic violence. The Domestic Violence Act allowed for the implementation of protection orders, which in turn allowed the police to remove the alleged perpetrator and protect the victim, even if the victim did not make a claim of domestic violence. 37. The Government recognized that the State’s only prison hosted over 240 inmates and needed to be rebuilt. Despite the Government’s willingness to rebuild and to establish a new penal institution, funding seemed to be out of reach owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the Government had created a separate facility for remand prisoners to ameliorate the situation. It further recognized that the conditions of non-remand detainees needed to be improved, which could be achieved only with assistance of the international community and other stakeholders. 38. On the right to a clean environment as a key element of an adequate standard of living, Antigua and Barbuda had been the first State in the region to ban single-use plastics and commit to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. It remained committed to protecting the environment and invested in renewable energy, notably through the construction of two solar power plants to decrease its reliance on fossil fuels. 39. The Marshall Islands commended Antigua and Barbuda for its adoption of several international human rights treaties. However, it expressed concern about trafficking in persons and the related sexual exploitation, and the lack of legal policies to promote and protect women’s rights and human rights in general. 40. Mauritius applauded Antigua and Barbuda for having provided necessary medical care under the National Social Protection Act (2020) and worked to advance tertiary medical health-care facilities through public efforts and public-private partnerships, despite the devastating impacts of Hurricane Irma and the COVID-19 pandemic. 41. Mexico welcomed the efforts made by Antigua and Barbuda to ensure inclusive education for persons with disabilities, and to combat trafficking in persons. It also commended the State for its inclusive and universal health-care system, the health benefits scheme, the low maternal mortality rate and the decline in the rate of early pregnancies. 42. Montenegro welcomed the adoption and implementation by Antigua and Barbuda of several laws in the areas of disability and equal opportunities, children’s justice and 5