E/C.12/NDL/CO/4-5 concerned that the situation is compounded by the rise in racism and xenophobia in the Netherlands (art. 2, para. 2). The Committee urges the State party to pay particular attention to the situation of migrants and persons from ethnic minorities in the Netherlands and calls on the State party to: (a) Identify any difficulties faced by these groups in accessing employment, housing, health and education, and take the necessary remedial steps; (b) Adopt and implement targeted policies and programmes to improve their situation; (c) Take all necessary measures to combat racism and xenophobia, including through the use of media and education to overcome stereotypes and promote diversity, bearing in mind that changing attitudes will necessitate long-term efforts reaching out to the public at large; (d) Enforce effectively the legal prohibitions against discrimination in the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights; and (e) Provide in its next periodic report comparative statistics on the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights by migrants and persons from ethnic minorities, and the rest of the population. 13. The Committee notes with concern that persons with disabilities face discrimination in the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights, particularly in the field of employment and education (art. 2, para. 2). The Committee calls on the State party to continue its efforts to promote integration of persons with disabilities in the labour market and to facilitate their access, physical or otherwise, to education. The Committee recommends that the State party take all necessary measures to ensure that all persons with disabilities enjoy the same economic, social and cultural rights as the rest of the population, according particular attention to their accessibility to public places. In this regard, the Committee draws the attention of the State party to its general comment No. 5 (1995) on persons with disabilities. 14. The Committee remains concerned that, in spite of advances made in all the constituent countries of the State party, women still do not enjoy economic, social and cultural rights on the same level as men. As regards employment, the Committee is concerned at the wage gap, the under-representation of women in the labour market and their concentration in part-time employment, in spite of measures introduced and services made available to facilitate reconciliation of work and family life. The Committee is also concerned that women are under-represented in political life (art. 3). The Committee calls on the State party, in all its constituent countries, to: (a) Increase the effectiveness of policies, strategies and programmes promoting gender equality in relation to economic, social and cultural rights, and adopt the remedial measures required; (b) Adopt the necessary measures to encourage employers to promote uptake of flexible work arrangements by women and men; and (c) Step up efforts to increase women’s participation in political life. The Committee draws the attention of the State party to its general comment No. 16 (2005) on the equal right of men and women and requests the State 4

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