Executive Summary International Organization for Standardization (ISO) certification, developing a citizens’ charter and a code of ethics, introducing the annual Public Service Excellence Award, and popularising egovernment. A palpable weakness, which Mauritius must address urgently, is disregard for the reports of the director of audit (the auditor general in some countries). The report for the year ended 30 June 2008 gives the impression that some ministries and departments are inefficient and lethargic, and that they underrate audits in general, and internal audits and quality service (that effective internal audits ensure) in particular. 1.34 1.35 1.36 10 Fighting corruption in politics. Mauritius has fought hard against corruption, especially since the 1990s. It has passed appropriate laws, like the Prevention of Corruption Act (POCA) of 2002, and established equally appropriate institutions like the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). However, it needs to amend POCA to establish a body to supervise the investigative work of ICAC and extend the applicability of the law to everyone (private individuals, election candidates and advisers). Promoting and protecting the rights of women. Mauritius has progressed in protecting women’s rights. It established a ministry to handle women’s matters in 1982. The ministry went through several changes in name and mandate. It was finally called the Ministry of Women’s Rights, Child Development and Family Welfare (MWRCDFW) in July 2009. The ministry works with other institutions like the National Council of Women (NCW) and the National Women Entrepreneurs’ Council. The country has also signed various conventions that promote and protect women’s rights. However, Mauritian women still face challenges, particularly domestic violence, despite existing laws meant to protect women. Some Mauritians say that the laws will not eradicate domestic violence. There are still stereotypes about inequality between the sexes in Mauritian society. In fact, Mauritius must support the laws with sensitisation and education programmes about women’s rights at all levels from primary schools to tertiary institutions. The government must introduce a number of measures to promote and protect women’s rights. It needs to ratify the various international, regional and subregional instruments for women’s rights and provide the ministry with funds and personnel so that it can do its work better. It also needs to make marital rape a criminal offence. Executive Summary 1.37 Promoting and protecting the rights of children and young people. Mauritius acceded to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on 26 July 1990. The country has also established a legal and institutional system for promoting and protecting the Mauritian child. This includes the Ombudsman for Children Act of 2003. 1.38 Nevertheless, Mauritius still has a number of child-related problems. They include early marriage, the sexual exploitation of children, sexual violence, child prostitution, drug use and addiction, and general juvenile delinquency. Mauritius needs to take a number of measures to protect the rights of children and young people. They include: (i) intensifying efforts to eradicate violence against children in families and in society generally; (ii) stemming child prostitution; (iii) conducting research about the causes of child delinquency; and (iv) adhering to the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. 1.39 Promoting and protecting the rights of vulnerable groups, including internally displaced and disabled people. Mauritius has taken steps to promote and protect the rights of vulnerable groups, including internally displaced and disabled persons. 1.40 The Senior Citizens Council Act of 1985 ensures the protection of elderly people via a council. It is a corporate body that falls under the Ministry of Social Security, National Solidarity and Senior Citizens Welfare and Reform Institutions. The Trust Fund for Disabled Persons Act of 1988 protects disabled people. It established a vocational training fund for disabled people. The Disabled Persons Training and Employment Act of 1996 includes a section on antidiscrimination. It is now an offence for employers to discriminate against disabled persons when they recruit employees, when they determine or allocate wages, salaries or pensions, or in any other employment-related matter. There are approximately 35,000 migrant workers in Mauritius. Most of them work in the export processing zone (EPZ). The Ministry of Labour, Industrial Relations and Employment (MLIRE) (Employment Division, Migrant Unit) looks after the interests of these workers. The Employment Rights Act of August 2008 (which came into force in 2009), the Employment Relations Act of 2008 and 30 regulations for each sector are the labour laws that protect these workers and their nonmigrant comrades. 1.41 The Chagossians are another vulnerable group. Britain administered Chagos Archipelago as a dependency of Mauritius between 1810 11