47 The family is the natural unit and basis of society which should be protected by the State. The State of Burundi adequately fulfils this responsibility. In the old days, the family played a primordial role in the education of the children. In social issues the Burundian used to give priority to mutual social assistance, for instance people helped in the construction of houses for vulnerable persons; orphans were taken in to bring them up until they were of age to make their own decisions and take care of themselves; part of the harvest used to be put aside for the most destitute. Pertaining to co-habitation, it is a practice which is considered immoral by Burundian tradition. Thus, in its Penal Code the State of Burundi protects the family from this bad practice and more specifically in its Article 351. The State compels illegal families to regularize their marriage to enable them enjoy social benefits, otherwise it is the children who would be the first to suffer. This facilitates the organization of sensitization sessions pertaining to the registration of births and the registration of marriages as well as campaigns for the legalization of illegal marriages. A registration campaign of non-registered children had been carried out across the entire territory. A measure to facilitate the registration of children and of illegal marriages within the BATWA Community was taken and to facilitate the registration of Civil Status this was decentralized up to the zone. The protection of women’s and child rights is a matter of concern for the State of Burundi. In this respect the first initiative had been to create a Ministry responsible for Women’s Affairs, the Ministry of Human Rights and of Gender. One of the major achievements in this area is the recent review of the Penal Code by Burundi which criminalizes violation against women in Articles 535,536 and 537 of this same Code. Moreover, in its Constitution, the State of Burundi grants women 30% of the positions in State Institutions. The State of Burundi has also ratified numerous International and Regional Conventions on the promotion of human rights in general and women’s rights in particular, thereby reiterating its commitment to promote and respect women’s rights. Concerning the rights of the Child, the Government has pursued its efforts to harmonize the legislation to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as evidenced by the ratification of the various Conventions and Protocols relative to the Rights of the Child. Progress has been made and there is a Children’s FORUM and children journalists have been trained to associate children in the affairs of their country while the FORUM serves as a framework for the expression of all issues relating to early childhood. As for child soldiers, there is a project within the Ministry of Human Rights to deal with the identification, demobilization and re-