51 [such] measures […] is a responsibility both of the State, and of the family, the community and the society to which the [child] belongs.”219 In addition, the Court has “reiterated that cases in which the victims of human rights violations are children are especially egregious”220 because, “[o]wing to their level of development and vulnerability, they require protection that ensures the exercise of their rights within the family and society and with regard to the State.”221 Thus, the “[a]ctions taken by the State and by society regarding protection of children and promotion and preservation of their rights should follow [the criteria of the best interests of the child].”222 Furthermore, Article 7 of the Convention of Belém do Pará, over which the Court has competence (supra para. 32), establishes the State’s duties “to prevent, punish and eradicate violence [against women],”223 which specify and complement the rights established in the American Convention, such as those established in Articles 4, 5 and 7.224 134. From the above it can be inferred that, in keeping with this normative framework concerning violence against women, the obligation to ensure rights acquires special significance in relation to girl children. This is so because the intrinsic vulnerability of childhood225 may be enhanced, due to the fact that they are female. In this regard, it should be noted that girls are, as has been stated, “particularly vulnerable to violence.”226 The special significance mentioned translates into the State’s obligation to act with greater and more rigorous diligence to protect and ensure the exercise and enjoyment of the rights of girl children in response to the fact or the mere possibility of their vulnerability in the presence of acts that actually or potentially involve gender-based violence or could result in this type of violence. 135. The obligation of prevention is one aspect of the obligation to ensure rights that, as the Court has stated: Includes all those measures of a juridical, political, administrative and cultural nature that promote the protection of human rights and ensure that any violations are considered and treated as wrongful acts that, as such, may lead to the punishment of those responsible, and the obligation to 219 Juridical Status and Human Rights of the Child. Advisory Opinion OC-17/02 of August 28, 2002. Series A No. 17, para. 62, and Case of Mendoza et al. v. Argentina. Preliminary objections, merits and reparations. Judgment of May 14, 2013. Series C No. 260, supra, para. 141. 220 Case of the “Street Children” (Villagrán Morales et al.) v. Guatemala. Merits. Judgment of November 19, 1999. Series C No. 63, para. 146, and Case of the Pacheco Tineo Family, supra, para. 217. 221 Cf. Juridical Status and Human Rights of the Child, supra, para. 93, and Case of Mendoza et al., supra, para. 144. 222 Cf. Juridical Status and Human Rights of the Child, supra, para. 59, and Case of Mendoza et al., supra, para. 143. 223 Regarding the concept of “violence against women” established in the treaty, it is pertinent to refer to Article 3 of the Convention of Belém do Pará, which indicates the right of “[e]very woman to be free from violence in both the public and private spheres.” 224 Cf. Case of the Miguel Castro Castro Prison v. Peru. Merits, reparations and costs. Judgment of November 25, 2006. Series C No. 160, para. 346, and Case of Gudiel Álvarez (Diario Militar), supra, para. 275. 225 The Committee on the Rights of the Child has indicated that “[a]t a universal level all children aged 0-18 years are considered vulnerable until the completion of their neural, psychological, social and physical growth and development.” Committee on the Rights of the Child. General Comment No. 13: The right of the child to freedom from all forms of violence. UN Doc. CRC/C/GC/13, 18 April 2011, para. 72. María Isabel Veliz Franco, who was 15 years of age at the time of her disappearance and death, is considered to be a child, because neither the arguments nor the evidence provided to the Court reveal that domestic law provides for a different age of majority. 226 The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, adopted at the sixteenth plenary session of the Fourth World Conference on Women on 15 September 1995, para. 116. Similarly, the former United Nations Commission on Human Rights had stated that “some groups of women, such as […] the girl child, […] are especially targeted and vulnerable to violence.” Cf. The elimination of violence against women. Resolution 1998/52 of the Commission on Human Rights. Fifty-second session, 17 April 1998, sixth preambular paragraph. More recently, the Committee on the Rights of the Child has indicated that “[b]oth girls and boys are at risk of all forms of violence, but violence often has a gender component.” Cf. Committee on the Rights of the Child. General Comment No. 13: The right of the child to freedom from all forms of violence, supra, para. 19