that threaten their lives, as well as to provide the necessary
conditions of a dignified life, including food, water, adequate
ventilation, an environment free from disease, and the provision
of adequate healthcare (including maternal healthcare and the
provision of antiretroviral drugs). The State should provide
necessary information on places of detention, the identity and
age of those detained, as well as the authorities responsible.
(37) Where a person dies in State custody, there is a presumption of
State responsibility and the burden of proof rests upon the State
to prove otherwise through a prompt, impartial, thorough and
transparent investigation carried out by an independent body.
This heightened responsibility extends to persons detained in
prisons, in other places of detention (official and otherwise), and
to persons in other facilities where the State exercises
heightened control over their lives.
H. Responsibility for violations by non-State actors
(38) The State also has an obligation to protect individuals from
violations or threats at the hands of other private individuals or
entities, including corporations. The State should ensure that all
individuals are able to exercise their rights and freedoms, for
example, by promoting tolerance, non-discrimination, and
mutual respect. Moreover, the State has a responsibility for
those deaths where authorities knew or ought to have known of
an immediate threat and failed to take measures that might have
been expected to avoid those deaths. States shall take
appropriate measures to investigate cases of enforced
disappearances committed by persons or groups acting without
the authorisation, support or acquiescence of the State, and to
bring those responsible to justice.
(39) The State is responsible for killings by private individuals which
are not adequately prevented, investigated or prosecuted by the
authorities. These responsibilities are heightened when an
observable pattern has been overlooked or ignored, such as is
often the case with respect to mob-justice, gender-based
violence, femicide, or harmful practices. States must take all
appropriate measures effectively to respond to, prevent and
eliminate such patterns or practices.
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