that the government join the Second Optional Protocol to the Civil Rights Covenant and ILO 4th national report on the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; providing support for the APF and GANHRI conferences; and offering invitational training to staff members of national human rights institutions of different countries. On June 26, we opened the ASEM Global Ageing Center in Seoul designed to serve as the platform for discussions on seniors' human rights between Asia and Europe. However, it still needs to draw greater direct participation from state parties, including the sharing of working expenses. Hate speech and discrimination against social minorities has been spreading rapidly, compromising human dignity and social integration. Social polarization is also intensifying with economically disadvantaged groups such as irregular workers and poverty-stricken youth and seniors growing. This situation calls for our active response to hate speech and further engagement in the resolution of polarization through the improvement of the social safety net for social minorities. The number of petitions submitted and processed in 2018 decreased compared to 2017. The number of petitions processed seemingly fell due to the surge in submissions in 2017, and thus many of them were left unresolved. Furthermore, investigation staff was dispatched to multiple task forces2) for different human rights issues, and large-scale ex officio investigations were conducted, including the one for sexual harassment and violence within the prosecution. Significant recommendations for the improvement of existing practices and the human rights of social minorities were also delivered. We recommended that the prosecution immediately remove the prohibition or suspension of departure when a suspect is ruled not guilty, and the prosecution announced that it would work to prevent any unduly prolonged prohibitions of departure. We recommended providing resident children at childcare institutions with academic guidance with the highest priority on ensuring their wellness and developing their talent during times of educational transition. An institution that attempted to forcefully hospitalize one of its resident children in a mental hospital was handed down a disciplinary measure. 2) The Special Team for Investigating Sexual Harassment and Sexual Molestation and Institutional Improvement (March 15-July 24, 2018) and the Joint Investigation Team for Sexual Violence Committed by the Military during the May 18 Democratization Movement (June 22-October 31, 2018) National Human Rights Commission of Korea Annual Report 2018 33 Part 1 | Introduction Nos. 87 and 98; seeking measures for the United Nations' concluding observations for Korea's