This website lays out the timeline for how a coalition of organizations and universities led by Professor Lisa Davis of the Human Rights and Gender Justice Clinic at CUNY School of Law worked to remove the outdated definition of gender adopted from the Rome Statute in the draft Crimes Against Humanity treaty. It also tracks the continuation of that work as the draft treaty slowly makes its way through the United Nations.

Prof. Davis, pulled together a coalition of organizations and universities. This Coalition sought to ensure that the draft treaty reflected the progress made since the Rome Convention and not adopt the outdated definition of gender. By December 2018, the Coalition was successful in organizing hundreds of civil society members, states and UN experts who made their voices heard to the Commission and called for the removal or revision of the definition of gender.

This blog post discusses judicial reasoning in the ICC’s Al Hassan case, particularly on gender-based persecution. While Judges Prost and Mindua found evidence of persecution on both religious and gender grounds, Judge Akane disagreed. The authors critique Akane’s decision and emphasize the broader implications for gender-based persecution in international law.

In this blog post, the authors discuss the ICC judgment in the Al Hassan case, marking the first trial for gender-based persecution. The judgment was divided, resulting in some convictions, but Al Hassan was acquitted of sexual violence, forced marriage, and gender-based persecution due to disagreements on duress and legal interpretation.

On June 26, 2024, Trial Chamber X of the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued the Trial Judgment in the Al Hassan case, concerning international crimes in Timbuktu, Mali, by Ansar Dine and AQIM (Al Qaeda in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb). Despite charges  that included war crimes and crimes against humanity such as forced marriage and rape, Al Hassan was acquitted of all gender-related charges, leading to confusion and disappointment among victims and observers. Although the judgment highlighted the coercive environment in Timbuktu where forced marriages occurred, with Judge Prost convicting Al Hassan, Judges Mindua and Akane acquitted him for different reasons. Mindua cited duress, while Akane claimed a lack of nexus and contribution to the crimes. The majority opinion affirmed that forced marriages were perpetrated by Ansar Dine/AQIM, facilitated by Al Hassan. The judgment’s flaws, particularly in understanding the coercive context and gendered violence, make it likely to be appealed. The Appeals Chamber may yet bring justice and reparations for the victims.

Trial Chamber X of the International Criminal Court (ICC) delivered its judgment in the Al Hassan case, sparking significant discussion regarding the Chamber’s unclear stance on gender-based persecution. Initially, the case seemed poised to clarify the definition of ‘attack’ in war crimes, an issue that has long eluded the ICC. However, the insufficiency of evidence linking Al Hassan to the destruction of cultural sites in Timbuktu led to his acquittal without a legal characterization of these acts. This omission leaves unresolved questions about the scope of ‘attacks’ under international humanitarian law. The Al Hassan judgment missed an opportunity to provide clarity, thus perpetuating ambiguity in ICC jurisprudence.

This blog post explores the Al Hassan case, where he was convicted of multiple serious crimes, including religious persecution but was acquitted of gender-based persecution. The judges agreed on the religious grounds but differed on gender persecution, with duress being a factor that excluded Al Hassan’s responsibility for gender-related crimes. The author discusses why, although the decision to not convict on charges of gender persecution is disappointing, it was still groundbreaking, providing an analysis of the legal reasoning behind the judgement.  

In this post, the author discusses how the German parliament passed a law reforming international criminal law to enhance prosecution of international crimes, close gaps in liability, strengthen victims’ rights, and improve court judgments’ global impact. The law updates provisions on sexual violence, enforced disappearances, functional immunity, war crimes, and trial documentation procedures.

Since the Taliban regained power in Afghanistan after the US troop withdrawal in 2021, the situation for women has dramatically worsened, with severe restrictions on their rights and freedoms, including education, work, healthcare, and mobility. This article explores avenues for holding the Taliban accountable for their actions, focusing on legal frameworks such as the Rome Statute and the Ljubljana Convention. It discusses the concept of “gender apartheid” and its potential inclusion in international conventions to address the systematic persecution of women. However, it raises concerns about the effectiveness of this approach compared to utilizing existing legal mechanisms like gender persecution. The article also suggests leveraging the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court to issue arrest warrants against Taliban leaders, both to pursue accountability and prevent international recognition of their regime.

In October 2023, the focus of the United Nations Security Council in New York was on “Women, Peace and Security.” Commemorating the October 2000 passage of the Security Council’s landmark Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (WPS), this occasion was a stock-taking moment for member states, the U.N. Secretary-General, and civil society as they debated how the international community could most effectively uphold its commitment to women’s participation, protection, and prevention, relief and recovery efforts in peace and security. 

It was also an opportunity to reinforce the call for inclusion of all women and lesbian, gay, bisexual, intersex and queer people of all genders in peace and security efforts. In the midst of a devastating year for women and LGBTIQ+ people in conflict settings, a ray of hope came from Colombia, where a transitional justice tribunal unveiled an indictment in July that charged 15 former rebels with war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against LGBTQ people during Colombia’s decades-long internal armed conflict, thus recognizing conflict-driven violence against LGBTQ people as gender persecution. 

Just Security Online Forum on Gender Persecution Policy Series

This post discusses how the ICC Office of the Prosecutor’s Policy on the Crime of Gender Persecution, in concert with existing international law, enhances the Office’s ability to investigate and prosecute gender-based rights violations, where the Court has jurisdiction.