A/HRC/40/53/Add.1 IV. Conclusions and recommendations A. Conclusions 89. It is time to ensure that the lived reality of moderation and progressiveness in Malaysia is consistent with the rhetoric of its Government. This is essential for the enjoyment of cultural rights. Human rights defenders report that not enough people are speaking out against the human rights impact of Islamization and some officials indicated to the Special Rapporteur that, while they agreed with her analysis of the cultural rights impact of fundamentalism, they were often afraid to speak publicly about this. More voices of moderation must be raised and allowed to express themselves freely. Malaysia is a wonderful diverse country with a rich history, vibrant and multifaceted cultures and a sophisticated set of cultural institutions in which many people can and do enjoy their cultural rights. However, the many gains achieved since independence and the cultural freedoms historically enjoyed must be protected with vigilance. They cannot be preserved by rhetoric alone, but rather by concrete action demonstrating effective commitment to the cultural rights of all, to cultural diversity and pluralism, and to unequivocal rejection of fundamentalist ideology. B. 1. Recommendations International and national legal framework 90. The Government of Malaysia should: (a) Improve its record of ratifying human rights treaties, including by becoming a party, without delay, to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the International Labour Organization’s Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169) and the UNESCO Convention against Discrimination in Education; (b) Remove its reservations to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the Convention on the Rights of the Child; (c) Enact implementing legislation for all human rights treaties to which Malaysia is a State party, and monitor progress toward full implementation. Implement all recommendations made to Malaysia by international human rights bodies, including the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, and Special Rapporteurs, and during the universal periodic review; (d) Ratify the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol; in the meantime, urgently take measures in the domestic framework to regularize the situation of people living unlawfully in the country and improve the rights and protection of refugees and asylum seekers; (e) Monitor implementation of the new national strategy on human rights with full transparency, and ensure compliance, including with its cultural rights provisions; (f) Ensure coordination of all bodies tasked with implementing human rights in Malaysia and require that cultural rights be fully considered in their work; (g) Establish a gender-balanced standing committee on human rights in Parliament and ensure that this body holds regular consultations with the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM) and human rights defenders, including women human rights defenders; 16