To Distinguished Representatives of Member States of the United Nations
Excellencies and Country Representatives:
The undersigned respectfully bring your attention to a glaring and consequential gap in the current Draft Articles on Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Humanity: the omission of the crime against humanity of gender apartheid.
By replicating the definition of “apartheid” as codified in the 1998 Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, the draft treaty is needlessly constrained to a 25‑year‑old articulation of race‑based apartheid. It fails to account for gender‑based apartheid, which has long been recognized by the international community, including United Nations Secretary‑General António Guterres. The past decades have witnessed significant progress in recognizing gendered crimes, and codifying gender apartheid should be part of that continued progress.
The failure to codify gender apartheid perpetuates an accountability vacuum that leaves many victims and survivors without remedy or reparation. The crime of gender apartheid is unique in animus and intent. It is distinct from other international crimes, including gender persecution, due to its dystopian ambition to maintain an institutionalized regime of systematic oppression and domination, where the under‑class is subjugated for the dominant group’s benefit and survival, dehumanized, and cut off from the resources and access needed to overcome their choreographed oppression. The Taliban’s ever deepening and institutionalized oppression of Afghan women and girls is a case in point. The codification of gender apartheid will assist victims and survivors holding perpetrators to account for the totality of crimes committed against them.
The Draft Crimes Against Humanity Convention presents an important opportunity for States to act and recognize extreme, institutionalized gender‑based discrimination for what it is: a type of apartheid. We understand that the draft treaty will be debated by the Sixth Committee at the UN General Assembly from 11 to 12 October 2023, and then subject to written comments and observations by Member States by the end of 2023. For the reasons set out in the attached brief, the undersigned recommend the following amendment (in bolded text) to the definition of the “crime of apartheid” contained in Article 2(2)(h) of the draft treaty:
“the crime of apartheid” means inhumane acts of a character similar to those referred to in paragraph 1, committed in the context of an institutionalized regime of systematic oppression and domination by one racial group over any other racial group or groups, or by one gender group over another gender group or groups, and committed with the intention of maintaining that regime.”
Codifying gender apartheid in the draft treaty does not require the creation of a completely new and separate crime; it only involves inserting gender into the definition of the “crime of apartheid.” We urge your Excellencies to consider this proposed amendment to fill the ongoing impunity gap under international law and to ensure a gender‑inclusive approach that better reflects the realities, both historical and ongoing, of institutionalized regimes of systematic oppression and domination.
We thank your Excellency’s Government in advance for your attention to this pressing issue.