A/HRC/47/8 35. Costa Rica made recommendations. 36. Croatia commended Australia for its ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and efforts to address domestic and sexual violence against women and children. 37. Cuba made recommendations. 38. Cyprus welcomed the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and the withdrawal of the country’s reservation to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. 39. Czechia expressed appreciation for the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and the adoption of a new action plan to combat domestic and family violence. 40. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea was concerned about continued human rights violations in Australia. 41. Denmark expressed concern about the country’s minimum age of criminal responsibility and the conditions of indigenous Australians. 42. Ecuador recognized the country’s ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture. 43. Egypt encouraged Australia to develop a long-term strategy in the area of human rights and expressed concerns about reports of increased racism and discrimination. 44. El Salvador recognized the country’s regional leadership in human rights. 45. Estonia expressed appreciation for the country’s ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and establishment of oversight mechanisms. 46. Ethiopia recognized the country’s efforts to address the gender pay gap, and its criminalization of human trafficking, slavery and slavery-like practices. 47. Fiji expressed appreciation for the country’s leadership in the Human Rights Council and its financial contributions to OHCHR. 48. Finland made recommendations. 49. France noted the country’s progress in combating violence and discrimination against women. 50. The delegation noted the long-standing commitment of Australia to human rights globally and in the region. It highlighted the country’s ongoing support for media freedom and the safety of journalists. It also noted that Australia was considering the draft global code of conduct for investigating and documenting conflict-related sexual violence (draft Murad code). 51. Regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, measures had been taken on the basis of expert medical advice and founded on the principles of universal health coverage. The delegation expressed concern about the pandemic’s disproportionate impact on vulnerable groups and highlighted the range of measures implemented to mitigate both the health and the economic impacts of the pandemic for all Australians. 52. The delegation highlighted the commitment of Australia to a managed and equitable system of migration consistent with the country’s human rights obligations as well as its strong border protection policies, which had allowed Australia to maintain some of the world’s most generous humanitarian programmes and had damaged the people-smuggling trade. Transferees under regional processing arrangements were not in detention, and immigration detention of children was always a last resort. 53. The delegation recognized the disparity between indigenous Australians and other Australians in health and socioeconomic outcomes, highlighting the new National Agreement on Closing the Gap negotiated with indigenous Australians. The delegation also highlighted the country’s commitment to jointly design a model for an indigenous voice to improve decision-making. 4