A/HRC/RES/12/16
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increased and are not adequately punished, in particular in those circumstances where public
authorities are involved in committing those acts;
(d) High rates of illiteracy continue to exist in the world, especially among women, and
reaffirms that full and equal access to education for girls and boys, women and men, is crucial
for the full enjoyment of the right to freedom of opinion and expression;
(e)
of views;
Media concentration is a growing phenomenon in the world and can limit a plurality
4.
Also expresses its concern that incidents of racial and religious intolerance,
discrimination and related violence, as well as of negative racial and religious stereotyping
continue to rise around the world, and condemns, in this context, any advocacy of national, racial
or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence, and urges
States to take effective measures, consistent with their obligations under international human
rights law, to address and combat such incidents;
5.
Calls upon all States:
(a)
To respect and ensure the respect for the rights referred to in paragraph 1 above;
(b) To take all necessary measures to put an end to violations of these rights and to
create the conditions to prevent such violations, including by ensuring that relevant national
legislation complies with their international human rights obligations and is effectively
implemented;
(c) To ensure that victims of violations of the rights referred to in paragraph 1 above
have an effective remedy, to investigate effectively threats and acts of violence, including
terrorist acts, against journalists, including in situations of armed conflict, and to bring to justice
those responsible in order to combat impunity;
(d) To ensure that persons exercising the above-mentioned rights are not discriminated
against, particularly in employment, housing, the justice system, social services and education,
with particular attention to women;
(e) To facilitate the full, equal and effective participation and free communication of
women at all levels of decision-making in their societies and in national, regional and
international institutions, including in mechanisms for the prevention, management and
resolution of conflicts;
(f) To enable children to exercise their right to express their views freely, including
through school curricula that encourage the development of and respect for different opinions,
and to have their views taken into account in all matters affecting them, the views of the child
being given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child;
(g) To respect freedom of expression in the media and broadcasting, in particular the
editorial independence of the media;