E/C.12/SVN/CO/1 page 2 B. Positive aspects 4. The Committee notes with satisfaction the State party’s efforts to fulfil its obligations under the Covenant and the protection generally afforded to economic, social and cultural rights in Slovenia. 5. The Committee notes with satisfaction that the Covenant has been incorporated into domestic law and can be invoked in the country’s courts. 6. The Committee is pleased that the institution of the Ombudsman is functioning well and that the Ombudsman is competent to submit complaints concerning human rights to the Constitutional Court. 7. The Committee welcomes the amendment to article 14 of the Constitution banning discrimination between men and women, the entry into force in 2002 of the Equal Opportunities for Women and Men Act and the establishment of the Equal Opportunities Office. 8. The Committee observes with satisfaction that there are few restrictions on the right to join a trade union and the right to strike in either the private or the public sector in Slovenia, and that members of the armed forces and the police also enjoy these rights. 9. The Committee welcomes the State party’s ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. C. Factors and difficulties impeding the implementation of the Covenant 10. The Committee has found no significant factors or difficulties likely to prevent the State party from effectively implementing the Covenant. D. Principal subjects of concern 11. The Committee is concerned about discrimination against the Roma, as well as about the distinction made in practice between indigenous and non-indigenous Roma. The Committee is also concerned that the latter do not enjoy protection of their cultural rights, such as the right to education in their mother tongue, unlike members of other minorities who enjoy this right under bilateral international agreements. 12. The Committee is concerned that, despite the various measures taken to improve the status of women, the latter continue to be at a disadvantage in society, particularly with regard to access to employment, equal pay for equal work, the size of their retirement pension and their involvement in decision-making, and the limited number of women in high-level public positions. 13. The Committee remains concerned about the large number of unemployed young persons, members of minorities and persons with disabilities. 14. The Committee is concerned that sexual harassment in the workplace is not classified as a specific offence and for this reason victims may not be adequately protected.