E/CN.4/2004/3/Add.3 page 5 7. In the Federal Capital, the delegation met with representatives of the following NGOs: Asamblea Permanente por los Derechos Humanos; Asociación Americana de Juristas; Asociación de Abogados de Buenos Aires; Asociación de Lucha por la Identidad Travestí-Transexual; Central de Trabajadores Argentinos - Corriente Clasista y Combativa; Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales (CELS); Coordinadora de Trabajo Carcelario de Rosario; Derechos Humanos - VIH; Federación Nacional de Trabajadores por la Tierra, la Vivienda y el Hábitat; Foro VIH Mujeres y Familia; Grupo de Mujeres de la Argentina; Instituto de Estudios Comparados en Ciencias Penales y Sociales (INECIP); Minorías Sexuales; Servicio Paz y Justicia; and Situación de Encierro Cárceles. 8. In the province of Buenos Aires, the delegation had talks with the Minister of Justice and Security, the President of the Court of Cassation, the Secretary for Human Rights, the Attorney-General, the Criminal Cassation Defence Counsel and the Under-Secretary for Prison Policy and Social Rehabilitation. It also met with various NGOs. 9. In the province of Mendoza, the Working Group was received by the Governor and met with the Minister of Justice and Security, the Minister of the Interior and the Provincial Under-Secretary for Justice. It had meetings with members of the Bar Association’s Commission on Criminal Law. It met with a number of NGOs, including the Coordinadora Provincial de Derechos Humanos and Familiares y Victimas Indefensas de Mendoza (FAVIM). 10. In the province of Salta, the delegation met with the Minister of the Interior and Justice, the Secretary for Human Rights and the Secretary for International Relations. In the parliamentary building (Palacio Legislativo), it met with the presidents of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies and with the human rights committees of both chambers. Talks were held with representatives of the following civil society organizations: Asociación de Comunidades Aborígenes Lhaka Honhat, Red de Derechos Humanos de la Universidad de Salta and Unión de Trabajadores Desocupados. II. GENERAL INFORMATION AND BACKGROUND 11. From 1976 to 1983, Argentina was under a military dictatorship. It was a tragic period in the nation’s history. Tens of thousands of people were the victims of kidnappings, extrajudicial executions, disappearances, torture or capture by members of the armed forces or security forces. Others were forced to flee abroad. Since 1983, when the country returned to democracy, many reforms, including constitutional reforms, have been carried out to strengthen democracy and the rule of law. During its visit, the delegation observed specific measures that demonstrate that the new Government of President Néstor Kirchner has based its policy on efforts to combat impunity and corruption and on the promotion and observance of human rights. 12. Argentina has ratified and incorporated into its Constitution a considerable number of international human rights instruments, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the American Convention on Human Rights. These instruments take precedence over ordinary laws.