21st Session of the Universal Periodic Review
Statement by the Delegation of the United States of America
Geneva,
January 21, 2015
– as prepared –
The United States warmly welcomes the Spanish delegation to the UPR Working Group.
We commend Spain’s longstanding commitment to the promotion of human rights, including the rights of LGBT persons, and its related efforts to fight trafficking in persons.
Though we acknowledge efforts to address it, we are concerned with instances of official corruption and the time it takes to prosecute and try such cases, undermining faith in judicial institutions and weakening the rule of law.
We are also concerned that judges, prosecutors, social workers, and other officials sometimes fail to protect women, impairing their ability to enjoy their rights.
We commend the steps Spain has taken toward Roma inclusion, but remain concerned that the Romani community experiences substantially higher rates of unemployment, poverty, and illiteracy than the general population.
Bearing in mind these concerns, we recommend that Spain:
- Strengthen efforts to promote a transparent political system by streamlining judicial procedures to investigate and prosecute corruption expeditiously;
- Foster strong coordination among the Ministries of Health, Justice, and Interior through a formal mechanism to combat gender-based violence and ensure judicial, law enforcement, and other officials are properly trained on all forms of gender-based violence and discrimination;
- Ensure laws regarding discrimination with respect to employment or occupation are enforced and that members of the Romani community have the same inclusive legal protections, wages, and working conditions as others.
(end statement)