A/69/318 B. Country visits Brazil (4 to 14 December 2013) 15. The Working Group undertook an official country visit to Brazil from 3 to 13 December 2013, during which it met with representatives of the Government at the federal, state and municipal levels and engaged with people of African descent from Brasilia, Pernambuco, Bahia, Recife, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. 16. The Working Group observed that over the past 10 years, Brazil had shown the political will to overcome racism and address issues of racial equality faced by Afro-Brazilians. It commended the initiatives taken to implement the rights enshrined in the Constitution relating to non-discrimination and equality for Afro-Brazilians, such as legislation, public policies for racial equality and, in particular, affirmative action. That included: (a) the Statute on Racial Equality, adopted in 2010; (b) Act 10,639/2003 on teaching African and Afro-Brazilian history and culture in educational institutions; (c) Decree 4,887/2003 and subsequent decrees recognizing and defining the process for land titl es for Quilombola communities; (d) the 2012 Supreme Court ruling on the constitutionality of racial quotas for accessing higher education; and (e) the discussions in the National Congress on establishing quotas for public posts in order to redress historic inequalities based on the slave trade, enslavement and colonialism that had prevented Afro-Brazilians from accessing such spaces. 17. The Working Group found that despite Government commitment and initiatives in the area of law and policy, the dismantling of racial discrimination remained slow. Afro-Brazilians constituted more than half of the population, yet they were underrepresented and invisible in the major power structures, t he media and the private sector. Institutional racism, discrimination and xenophobia continued to permeate the security and justice systems at all levels. That impeded equal access to justice for people of African descent when they were victims of violatio ns. It manifested in racial profiling, disproportionate numbers of arrests and overrepresentation in the prison population. The Working Group expressed concern about alleged violations of human rights perpetuated by security forces, in particular the military and civil police, against young black people, often with impunity. Afro-Brazilians benefited proportionately less from educational and health -care facilities, the administration of justice, public and private investment, basic infrastructure and other services. The Working Group also expressed concern about the situation of homeless and landless people as well as insufficient housing policies and lack of housing, which negatively affected Afro -Brazilians, in particular in favelas and quilombos. The Working Group raised concerns about the multiple forms of discrimination that affected women and girls of African descent as well as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals, which manifested in inequalities in access to employment in both the public and private sectors and in health conditions, including high rates of maternal mortality. It also voiced concern about the racism, persecution and violations of cultural rights and the right to religious freedom suffered by the religious communities of African origin, such as Candomblé and Umbanda. 18. The Working Group underlined that the effective implementation of laws and public policies protecting racial equality were essential to bring about real change and a positive impact for Afro-Brazilians. It emphasized that the fight against racism 6/22 14-59293