bring deprived and vulnerable people closer to the justice system, including women and children, an Order was made on the organization of judicial assistance. It must also be noted that juvenile courts have been established; Courts in Kinshasa and the provinces have been rehabilitated and reconstructed, etc. 123. However, in spite of the hopes raised by the laws on sexual violence and their initial enforcements which led to the imprisonment of a number of criminals, it must be noted that some women victims of sexual violence have still not received compensation in respect of civil damages ordered by judges. The lack of satisfactory judicial redress for women victims of sexual violence leads to the loss of confidence in the courts by the victims, and this creates a deeper gap between men and women in terms of access to justice. 124. Though, generally, the Congolese criminal Code establishes offences and sentences in an impersonal manner and therefore non-discriminatory, it must be admitted that some difficulties remain, particularly de jure and de facto discrimination in the Congolese criminal justice system. Concerning the offence of adultery, there has been flagrant discrimination against women. Quite often, it is the woman who is condemned whereas the offence of adultery, whether it is caused by man or woman must be punished in equal measure. The revised Family Code has provided a positive ruling on this issue. 125. Thus, the Ministry of Women, Family and Children’s Affairs and its partners are calling for the philosophy of the Congolese criminal law to be reviewed in order to develop a new criminal code based on human rights, dignity of the human being and equality among men and women while seeking to provide specific protection to the most vulnerable, particularly women subjected to outmoded customs and freedom-destroying stereotypes. 126. The difficulties include the non –popularization of laws and mechanisms established to promote access by women to justice and the poor knowledge on the part of the magistrates, lawyers, court clerks and prison personnel about international and regional legal instruments on the rights of women and gender. 127. The national consultations on justice organized recently in the country undertook a diagnosis and made recommendations to rectify this deplorable situation. 128. Among the progress achieved, there is the need to mention the development of policies and programmes with strategic pillars, among others, to improve access by women to justice, the major ones are: the STAREC programme, an important aspect of the fight against sexual violence has been implemented and coordinated by the Minister of Women, Family and Children’s Affairs, the National Strategy for Combating Sexual and Gender-based Violence, the judicial system reform programme which has enabled magistrates’ courts to be established in the major cities of the country. Regarding the protection of women’s rights, the Procedural Code also specifies that the physical search of the body of a woman should be done by another woman in an enclosed location. The same rule is applicable to the judicial police officers working at the borders and prison officers. Moreover, in the prisons, men and women are lodged in separate cells and quarters. Thus, in Congolese prisons, there are spaces for men and quarters for women. 129. With regard to the equitable representation of women in judicial institutions and those responsible for law enforcement, the DRC government initiated a recruitment drive of new magistrates in 2010 and 2011 based on competitive entrance organized by the Higher Judicial Council: out of 2000 magistrates recruited, at least 400 of them were women.Tables No. 4 and 5 indicate the representation of women and men in the judicial bodies and the Congolese National Police.  POLITICAL PARTICIPATION AND DECISION-MAKING (ARTICLE 9) 130. In this thematic area, the government’s vision is to promote the implementation of gender equality as prescribed by country’s Constitution. Indeed, Article 14 explicitly raises the option and request of the public authorities to ensure the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women and to ensure the promotion and protection of their rights, in particular the right of women to equal representation in national, provincial and local institutions. This 32