CCPR/C/79/Add.74 page 2 B. Factors and difficulties affecting the implementation of the Covenant 4. The Committee recognizes that the State party, which is emerging from a change of government that ended a long period of dictatorial rule, is undergoing a transition towards democracy in which the infrastructure necessary for the implementation of the Covenant has not been fully developed. The Committee notes that many encouraging legislative initiatives with respect to human rights are meeting with difficulties, and that a full assessment of their implementation is not yet possible. 5. The Committee notes that social and economic disparities are all-pervasive in the country and result in high levels of poverty and illiteracy, and lack of opportunity especially for the indigenous population, women and the poor. C. Positive aspects 6. The Committee notes with satisfaction the efforts of the Government of Bolivia to introduce democracy and to match the country's level of human rights protection with international standards. 7. The Committee particularly welcomes the promulgation of the 1994 Constitution, which incorporates provisions for the protection of civil and political rights. The Committee welcomes the Government's declared intention to put an end to serious violations of human rights and to create a better political, constitutional and legal framework to allow the full implementation of the rights enshrined in the Covenant. 8. The Committee notes with satisfaction the reform of the Penal Code which abolishes the death penalty. 9. The Committee also welcomes the legal reforms undertaken, notably constitutional amendments to bring Bolivian law into conformity with international human rights standards, the adoption of legislation to abolish imprisonment and physical constraint for the enforcement of economic obligations (Ley de Abolición de Prisión y Apremio Corporal por Obligaciones Patrimoniales), the new Bail Act (Ley de Fianza Juratoria contra la Retardación de Justicia Penal), the law against domestic violence (Ley contra la Violencia Intrafamiliar o Doméstica), and the reforms in the legislation governing the electoral system (Ley de Reformas y Complementacion al Régimen Electoral), the legal aid programme (Programa de Defensa Pública) and habeas corpus and amparo. 10. The Committee welcomes the reinstitution after 100 years of the Ministry of Justice, as well as the establishment of the Human Rights Department within the Ministry of Justice and the establishment of the Gender Department. The Committee also welcomes the creation of the necessary legal machinery to receive complaints and manage various aspects of human rights issues, including through the Ministry of Justice, the Parliamentary Commission for Human Rights, Legal Aid and the Public Prosecutors Office, and the creation of a human rights office in the Chapare area.