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ĐORĐEVIĆ v. CROATIA JUDGMENT
State, this again meant the ability to recognise and address discrimination
based on the victim’s disability, and sufficient knowledge about disability to
be able to apply the law with respect for the needs of persons with
disabilities. In specific cases, observance of the non-discrimination principle
might mean recognising the specific situation of persons with disabilities
compared with their non-disabled peers. The second paragraph of Article 5
alluded to the obligation of the State to protect persons with disabilities
against discrimination on all grounds. Again, meeting this obligation
required extensive training of State agents.
135. The third-party intervener also pointed out that the United Nations
Convention obliged the States Parties to “take all effective legislative,
administrative, judicial or other measures to prevent persons with
disabilities” from being subjected to violence, which also required training
of those working in the field of the administration of justice.
136. In conclusion, the European Disability Forum submitted that, so
far, disability hate crime had not received enough attention from lawmakers and law-enforcement authorities. This had resulted in a failure to
recognise disability hate crime as such, as well as in under-reporting and
misunderstanding of that phenomenon. The response of the authorities to
this problem should shift from reactive to proactive and be aimed at
protecting persons with disabilities from all acts of violence.
2. The Court’s assessment
(a) As regards the first applicant
(i) General principles
137. The Court reiterates that Article 3 of the Convention must be
regarded as one of the most fundamental provisions of the Convention and
as enshrining core values of the democratic societies making up the Council
of Europe (see Pretty v. the United Kingdom, no. 2346/02, § 49, ECHR
2002-III). In contrast to the other provisions in the Convention, it is cast in
absolute terms, without exception or proviso, or the possibility of
derogation under Article 15 of the Convention (see, inter alia, Chahal v. the
United Kingdom, 15 November 1996, § 79, Reports 1996-V).
138. The Court reiterates that, as regards the question whether the State
could be held responsible, under Article 3, for ill-treatment inflicted on
persons by non-State entities, the obligation on the High Contracting Parties
under Article 1 of the Convention to secure to everyone within their
jurisdiction the rights and freedoms defined in the Convention, taken
together with Article 3, requires States to take measures designed to ensure
that individuals within their jurisdiction are not subjected to torture or
inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, including such ill-treatment