A/HRC/32/21 national laws which arms are permitted for civilian possession and the conditions under which they can be used; that they have adequate laws, regulations and administrative procedures to exercise effective control over the legal possession of small arms and light weapons and over their transfer in order to prevent illicit trafficking; and that States emerging from conflict should, as soon as practicable, impose and enforce licensing requirements for all privately owned firearms on their territory (see A/52/298, para. 80). B. International human rights law 1. Due diligence obligations to protect human rights 14. Human rights law requires States to protect human rights with due diligence, which entails the obligations to prevent and sanction harmful private activity that impairs the enjoyment of human rights. In particular, the Human Rights Committee, in its general comment No. 31 (2004) on the nature of the legal obligations on States parties to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, stated that those obligations would only be fully discharged if individuals were protected by the State, not just against violations of Covenant rights by its agents, but also against acts committed by private persons or entities that would impair the enjoyment of Covenant rights insofar as they were amenable to application between private persons or entities. The Committee further noted that there might be circumstances in which a failure to ensure Covenant rights as required by article 2 would give rise to violations by States parties of those rights, as a result of States parties’ permitting or failing to take appropriate measures or to exercise due diligence to prevent, punish, investigate or redress the harm caused by such acts by private persons or entities (see also E/CN.4/1995/42, para. 102). 15. For example, the right not to have one’s life taken arbitrarily implies an obligation on the part of States parties to take reasonable steps to prevent situations that could result in the violation of the right to life.39 Accordingly, this right generates the positive obligation to prevent killing by private individuals and non-State actors in certain situations. It also implies putting in place effective criminal law provisions to deter commission of offences. 40 The State is thus under an obligation to take measures to prevent known, real and immediate risks to the life of an identified individual or individuals from the criminal acts of a third party.41 Finally, a broad approach to defining the content of the due diligence obligation in relation to the right to life also encompasses “access to the conditions that guarantee a dignified existence”.42 2. Due diligence obligations of States and civilian access to firearms 16. United Nations human rights bodies and mechanisms have examined and further articulated the human rights implications of the use of firearms by private entities, including for the due diligence obligations of States. 39 40 41 42 6 Implementation of the Programme of Action, held in 2008, the issue of civilian possession of small arms and light weapons was considered by some States to be important to the implementation of the Programme of Action (see A/CONF.192/BMS/2008/3, outcome document, para. 28 (g)). Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Velásquez-Rodriguez v. Honduras, judgment of 29 July 1988, para. 172. European Court of Human Rights, Akkoç v. Turkey, judgment of 10 October 2000, paras. 77-78. Ibid. Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Case of the “Street Children” (Villagrán-Morales et al.) v. Guatemala, judgment of 19 November 1999, para. 144.