E/C.12/SRB/CO/2
No. 150 (1978) concerning Labour Administration: Role, Functions and Organisation, and
the Maritime Labour Convention (2006), on 15 March 2013;
(f)
1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, on 7 December 2011.
4.
The Committee welcomes the State party’s efforts to promote economic, social and
cultural rights, which included the adoption of:
(a)
The Law on Prohibition of Discrimination, on 31 August 2009, followed by
the appointment of the Commissioner for Protection of Equality, on 5 May 2010, and the
adoption of the Anti-Discrimination Strategy 2013–2018, in June 2013;
(b)
The Law on Gender Equality, which is aimed at creating, among other things,
equal employment opportunities for women, in 2009; and the amendments to the Law on
the Election of Members of the Parliament, which set a 33 per cent quota for the
underrepresented sex on electoral lists, in 2011;
(c)
The Law on Amending the Law on Non-Contentious Procedures and the Law
on Permanent and Temporary Residence, which enabled birth registration and issuance of
personal documentation to stateless persons, in particular Roma, in 2012 and 2009,
respectively; the Law on Asylum, in 2007; and the Law on Migration Management, in
2012;
(d)
The amendments to the Law on the Foundations of the Education System,
which enhanced inclusive and non-discriminatory education, in 2011; the Law on Social
Welfare, which broadened the concept of persons incapable of work and increased related
social welfare benefits, in 2011; and the Law on Patients’ Rights, which introduced
advisors on patients’ rights in local self-governments, in 2013;
(e)
The adoption of the National Employment Strategy 2011–2020, which
provided for subsidies for the employment of Roma, in 2011; and the amendments to the
Labour Law, which extended the protection of working mothers and pregnant women, in
2013.
5.
The Committee also welcomes the strategies and national action plans against
corruption, trafficking in persons, and domestic violence, as well as the operation of the
Office of the Protector of Citizens (Ombudsman).
C.
Principal subjects of concern and recommendations
Direct applicability of the Covenant
6.
While noting that the Covenant forms an integral part of the legal system and is
directly applicable, the Committee regrets that the State party was not able to provide
information about the cases of direct applicability of the Covenant before the courts in the
State party and the available remedies for individuals claiming a violation of their
economic, social and cultural rights.
The Committee calls on the State party to collect and include in its next periodic
report information on the justiciability of the rights enshrined in the Covenant,
including the cases of direct application of the Covenant before domestic courts, and
on the available remedies for individuals claiming a violation of the economic, social
and cultural rights contained in the Covenant. In that respect, the Committee draws
attention to its general comment No. 9 (1998) on the domestic application of the
Covenant. The Committee also recommends that the State party improve its human
rights training programmes so as to promote better knowledge, awareness and
application of the Covenant, in particular among the judiciary, law enforcement
officials and other actors, as well as among the rights holders.
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