A/74/148 62. From a substantive perspective, domestic violence amounts to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and, where it involves the intentional and purposeful or discriminatory infliction of severe pain or suffering on a powerless person, to torture. From the attributive perspective of State responsibility, States have not only the negative obligation to refrain from engaging in, instigating or otherwise encouraging domestic violence, but also the positive obligation to effectively prevent, protect against, respond to, investigate, prosecute and provide redress for such abuse at the hands of private actors. 63. While it is not possible for States to eliminate the risk of domestic violence completely, a range of measures can and must be taken to mitigate such risk substantially, to empower those exposed to such risk and to support and offer redress to survivors. States must take all measures reasonably available to them to fulfil their legal obligations in line with the principles of non-discrimination, due diligence and good faith. 64. The particular context in which domestic violence occurs and the wider environment in which patterns and enabling factors of domestic violence are embedded give rise to particular challenges in terms of prevention, investigation, accountability and redress, which must be considered. In particular, the domestic context of the family and the home is largely withdrawn from the purview of the State and protected, to a certain extent, by the right to privacy, resulting in considerable difficulties with regard to the effective detection, identification and protection of victims, perpetrators and situations of risk. 65. Domestic violence frequently occurs, or is exacerbated or perpetuated, at the intersection of different types of discrimination. Societal indifference to, or even support for, the subordinate status of certain persons, in particular of women and children, together with the existence of discriminatory and disempowering laws, combined with the sometimes systematic or systemic failure of States to prevent and redress abuse, create conditions under which victims are subjected to severe forms of domestic violence with impunity and for prolonged periods of time. 66. In most cases of domestic violence, the relationship between perpetrators and victims is marked by factors such as legal and/or economic dependence or otherwise unequal power relations, social expectations, or strong emotional ties, which add further complexity to the identification and implementation of adequate preventive, protective and punitive measures in line with the rights and needs of the victims, including the best interests of the child. 67. The trivialization of domestic violence is often a consequence of a systemic and/or systematic failure of States to regard as a matter of public concern abuse that predominantly affects women, children, sexual and gender minorities, older persons, disabled persons and other marginalized groups. That trivialization often goes hand-in-hand with the stigmatization of the victims of domestic violence, in particular those perceived to have transgressed dominant social norms, for example by breaching a so-called “honour” code, or by reporting a close relative to the authorities. 68. In many contexts, perpetrators of domestic violence are still excused or even encouraged by dominant social or legal norms, including systemic tolerance of certain abuses and suspicion towards, or even legally enshrined or societally administered punishment of, complainants. The effect of such dynamics is often further compounded by legal, structural and socioeconomic conditions that may increase certain persons’ exposure to violence and abuse. Those conditions are in general the result of public governance failures and must be alleviated by States through systematic reform of relevant policies and practices. 19-11892 19/23