A/HRC/23/56/Add.1 It was reported that the Ayoreo are isolated and marginalized, and no major policy measure has been taken to support their social and economic integration. C. Situation of the Afro-Bolivian community 65. It is estimated that there are 30,000 to 35,000 Afro-descendants in the Plurinational State of Bolivia, mainly in the Yungas region and in the city of La Paz (department of La Paz), but also in Cochabamba, Santa Cruz and Sucre. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the recognition of Afro-Bolivians as a distinct ethnic and cultural group and their economic, social, political and cultural rights as provided for under the Constitution of 2009. He remains concerned about the persistent cases of discrimination against Afro-Bolivian communities, which as a whole still live in a situation of invisibility and social exclusion, and suffer from widespread discrimination, in particular in the fields of education, health and employment. 66. The Special Rapporteur was informed that, given that Afro-Bolivian persons were not included in the census conducted in 2001, there is a lack of relevant statistics and data on how many Afro-Bolivians actually live in the country and the percentage that has access to education, health and other public services. As noted above, Afro-Bolivians were included in the census in 2012.6 Although the situation of indigenous peoples, communities and other ethnic groups has improved, the situation of Afro-Bolivians has remained unchanged. It was reported that even in the current plurinational structure of the State, the representation of Afro-Bolivians remains too limited, and their voices and views are generally not given due consideration. 67. Representatives of the Afro-Bolivian community expressed serious concerns that many cases of racial discrimination, racist attacks and verbal abuse against Afro-Bolivians had not been addressed in accordance with the Law against Racism and All Forms of Discrimination (see paragraph 14 above). The Special Rapporteur was informed that a large number of Afro-Bolivians still suffered systematically from the lack of justice, reporting mechanisms and impartiality of public administration and police officials. He shares the concern that, although there has been a significant drop in racist expressions and language in the media since the adoption of Law No. 045, racist abuse and attacks against and racial profiling of Afro-Bolivians is still prevalent in everyday life contexts – on the street, in workplaces, schools, universities and other public places, and by the police. D. Migrants and refugees 68. According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), as at January 2012, a total of 716 refugees and 18 asylum seekers from 20 countries currently live in the Plurinational State of Bolivia. 7 69. The new Constitution provides for the right to seek and be granted asylum, and the principle of non-refoulement. The Plurinational State of Bolivia enacted its first law on refugee law, Law No. 251, on 20 June 2012, which represents a major step in the reinforcement of the protection framework of refugees. Until the adoption of the Law, the domestic legal instrument on the granting of asylum in the Plurinational State of Bolivia was Supreme Decree No. 28.329 of September 2005, which was not in line with international standards in key areas of refugee protection. The new law guarantees 6 7 CERD/C/BOL/17-20. See www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/page?page=49e492916&submit=GO. 15