A/HRC/41/54/Add.1 27. As the country’s national human rights institution, the National Human Rights Council plays an important role in advancing equality and human rights. The Special Rapporteur acknowledges the leadership role of the National Human Rights Council in the area of gender equality and women’s rights, but she notes that concrete measures are required to ensure that combating racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance is included in its work. The National Human Rights Council must take a more active role in the implementation of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination in Morocco, and in the implementation of other racial and religious equality and non-discrimination standards. 28. The Special Rapporteur notes with appreciation that the National Human Rights Council is represented across the country through its 13 regional commissions, which allows it to monitor the human rights issues and regional dynamics that affect racial equality in different parts of Morocco. Yet, the Special Rapporteur expresses concern that some of the regional commissions lack adequate capacity and expertise to effectively address racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance. The Special Rapporteur was also informed about challenges in handling complaints in a timely manner, and she received credible information about instances in which the regional commission in Tangier had failed to take action on particular cases of alleged racial discrimination against migrants by local authorities. 29. The work of the National Human Rights Council is complemented by the Institution of the Mediator of the Kingdom (the ombuds institution), which was created in 2011 in accordance with article 162 of the Constitution. The institution is mandated to promote the principles of the rule of law, good governance, justice, equity and human rights in the provision of services by public bodies. To this end, it is empowered to handle complaints, to conduct enquires and investigations, and to issue decisions or recommendations to relevant authorities. To date, the institution’s work on discrimination and equality issues appears to be limited, and the Special Rapporteur was informed that none of the complaints received had related to cases of alleged racial discrimination. However, the institution could potentially provide a valuable avenue of redress for those experiencing racial discrimination when interacting with public authorities. Awareness-raising activities, anti-discrimination training for staff and the collection of disaggregated data on complaints are some of the key measures that could be taken in this regard. 30. The Special Rapporteur also commends the establishment in 2001 of the Institut Royal de la Culture Amazighe, where she had the benefit of attending a celebration of Amazigh women artisans and their beautiful textiles and artistry. She commends the important work that the institute is doing to strengthen written Amazigh, through lexical and other developments, and to support the flourishing of Amazigh cultural traditions. The Special Rapporteur was pleased to learn about the comprehensive outreach and communication strategies employed by the institute. The institute has developed cooperation agreements with numerous government bodies, partnered with 2,000 associations, and funded more than 3,000 projects to promote the Amazigh language and all aspects of Amazigh culture. The Special Rapporteur appreciates the fact that educational materials developed by the institute are not aimed only at teaching about the Amazigh language and Amazigh culture, but also at promoting attitudes against racism, hatred and exclusion. 31. Finally, the Special Rapporteur welcomes the work of the High Authority for Audiovisual Communication in countering hate speech in the media, notably the guide that it developed in 2018 in partnership with its counterparts from Côte d’Ivoire and Tunisia and the International Organization of la Francophonie, entitled “Combating hate speech in the audiovisual media: norms, jurisprudence, good practices and cases”, as well as the training sessions it has organized with journalists – including on the margins of the December 2018 conference in Marrakech on the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration – to raise awareness about discrimination of all kinds. She further welcomes the series of disciplinary measures taken by the High Council for Audiovisual Communication (Conseil supérieur de la communication audiovisuelle) against a number of television and radio stations that had broadcast racist discourses. 9