CAT/C/SLE/CO/1 firearms by law enforcement officials can only be employed as a measure of last resort and if strictly unavoidable for the purpose of protecting life, in accordance with the Convention, the Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials and the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials (1990). The State party should provide regular training to law enforcement personnel in order to ensure that officials comply with the above rules and are aware of the liabilities they incur if they make unnecessary or excessive use of force. Sexual and gender-based violence, including domestic violence 14. While welcoming the measures taken to combat gender-based and domestic violence (see paras. 5 (a) and (c) and 6 (b) above), the Committee remains concerned at the high prevalence of gender-based violence in the country, including rape of girls by close relatives and teachers. The Committee also notes with concern the prevalent underreporting, partly due to the pressure on victims to resort to out-of-court settlements. Investigations are also ineffective, as acknowledged by the State party, due to “the inadequate capacity of the family support units to respond to gender-based violence cases, pressure by family members of the victims to drop charges, obstruction of justice by influential people including traditional leaders and politicians, and by the long delay in court trials” (HRI/CORE/SLE/2012, para. 149) (arts. 2, 12 and 16). The State party should strengthen its efforts to eradicate sexual and gender-based violence, including domestic violence, in particular by: (a) Providing the necessary resources to the family support units, and extending their presence in all police stations, particularly at chiefdom level; (b) Ensuring that all cases of violence against women and children, including sexual and domestic violence, are expeditiously and thoroughly investigated, the perpetrators prosecuted and, if convicted, punished with appropriate sanctions; (c) Guaranteeing victims full access to health services, including to free medical reports, family planning and to the prevention and diagnosis of sexually transmitted diseases, and ensuring that victims obtain shelter and redress, including fair and adequate compensation and the fullest possible rehabilitation; (d) Training, inter alia, judges, prosecutors, police officers, forensic services and health-care providers on the strict application of the legislative framework with a gender-sensitive approach; (e) Extending awareness-raising campaigns on gender-based violence, particularly to schools and the community at large. Female genital mutilation 15. The Committee takes note of the efforts made by the State party to combat female genital mutilation, but it remains deeply concerned at the fact that this practice is not penalized and, in fact, is highly prevalent in the State party. While taking note that section 33 of the Child Rights Act 2007 prohibits “any cultural practice which dehumanises or is injurious to the physical and mental welfare of a child”, the Committee takes into account the State party’s core document, in which it indicated that the Act “does not address the pervasive practice of female genital mutilation” (HRI/CORE/SLE/2012, para. 147) (arts. 2, 12, 13, 14 and 16). In line with the commitment it made during the universal periodic review in May 2011 and in line with the State’s obligations under the Convention, the State party should urgently: criminalize female genital mutilation, immediately adopt measures to eradicate this practice, and conduct enhanced and robust awareness-raising 5