Photo: Doaa Albaz

We, the undersigned organisations and individuals, welcome the official start of preparatory work for a Crimes Against Humanity Convention. This is a significant opportunity to ensure an inclusive instrument that addresses long-standing gaps in the protection against gender-based crimes, particularly for women and girls. We urge states to adopt a gender-competent and intersectional negotiation process and convention, which is shaped by victims’ multidimensional experiences. We call on all states to take comprehensive action, including:

Forced Marriage: as compelling a person into a conjugal union through force, threat, coercion or inability to consent, consistent with established jurisprudence.

Reproductive Violence: as intentional acts or omissions that violate a person’s reproductive autonomy.

Gender Apartheid: as inhumane acts committed within and to maintain an institutionalised regime of systemic gender-based oppression and domination.

Slave Trade: as acts involved in bringing a person into, and maintaining them in, a situation of slavery, and reflecting its peremptory status.

Victims’ perspectives, including those from marginalised groups, should shape the treaty’s content, particularly with regard to prevention, accountability, and reparations.

States should conduct safe consultations with victims on the text—including the definition of victim—and provide procedural accommodations to ensure their meaningful participation throughout the negotiations, implementation and monitoring.

The text should define victims to include at least all persons who suffer harm from acts that constitute crimes against humanity in line with international standards and provide for prompt, full, and effective reparations.

Gender-inclusive language is used throughout the text of the convention.

An approach that is grounded in intersectionality and gender inclusivity guides all sections of the convention, including provisions on definitions, procedure and enforcement.

A strong non-discrimination and substantive equality clause and strong provisions for monitoring to promote implementation, progressive interpretation, and compliance are included.

In the text, gender is understood in line with current international human rights and criminal law.

The negotiations incorporate gender expertise and robust civil society participation, intersessional meetings on gender justice, and gender parity across delegations.

1. 6Rang (Iranian LGBT+ Network)

2. A World Without Chemical and Biological Weapons

3. Action pour la Réforme de la Justice et la Promotion des Droits de l’Homme (ARJPDH)

4. ADIFEVEA World

5. Advocacy Network for Justice and Peace (ANJP)

6. Afghanistan Human Rights and Democracy Organisation

7. Africa Legal Aid

8. African Platform for Human Rights and Governance (APHURG)

9. Al-Haq

10. Alianza Iniciativa de Mujeres Colombianas por la Paz-IMP

11. Alpha Support Development Programme

12. Amnesty International

13. Aotearoa Lawyers for Peace

14. APDHE

15. Article 19

16. Asia Justice Coalition

17. Asian Resource Foundation

18. Association of World Citizens

19. Avaaz

20. Awer Women Empowerment

21. Baran Tursun Foundation

22. Basel Peace Office

23. Bir Duino-Kyrgyzstan

24. Center for Human Rights Advocacy

25. Center for Justice and Accountability

26. Center for Prisoners’ Rights

27. Center for Reproductive Rights, Latin America and Caribbean program

28. Centro Internacional para Investigaciones en Derechos Humanos (CIIDH)

29. Children’s Legal Rights and Development Center (CLRDC)

30. Civitas Maxima

31. Clinique de Droit International Pénal et humanitaire

32. Coalition for the International Criminal Court

33. Coalition for the Prevention of Hazara Genocide (CPHG)

34. Coalition Nationale (CPI RDC)

35. Coalition of Somali Human Rights Defenders (CSHRD)

36. Concern for Integrated Development

37. Congo Peace Initiative, C.P.I.

38. DIGNITY

39. Educational and Health Organization for Afghanistan Women

40. End Gender Apartheid Campaign

41. Equality Now

42. European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR)

43. Farida Global Organization

44. FOCEDEP

45. Forum of Nigerian Women In Politics (FONWIP)

46. Foundation Builders

47. Free Yezidi Foundation

48. Freedom from Torture

49. Fundación Internacional Baltasar Garzón (FIBGAR)

50. Global Initiative Against Impunity (GIAI)

51. Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect

52. Global Human Rights Group

53. Global Justice and Research Project

54. Global Justice Center

55. Global Rights Compliance

56. Global Survivors Fund

57. Good Health Community Programmes

58. Hitma for Cultural and Social Development

59. Human Rights Advocates

60. Human Rights Centre ZMINA

61. Human Rights First

62. Human Rights Watch

63. ImPact Coalition on Strengthening International Judicial Institutions

64. IMPACT: Center Against Human Trafficking and Sexual Violence in Conflict

65. Indigenous Peoples Network, Kenya

66. International Center for the Treatment of Violence

67. International Convocation of U*U Women

68. International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)

69. International Helping For The Young

70. International Humanitarian Law and Youth Initiative (IHLYI)

71. Investigator Organization for the Rule of Law

72. Just Access

73. Just Planet

74. Justice for Iran

75. Justicia Pro Persona, A.C.

76. Karama

77. Keen and Care Initiative

78. Kenya Human Rights Commission

79. Kurdish organizations Network coalition for the International Criminal court (KONCICC)

80. Kurdistan Center for International Law

81. Kurdistan Organizations Network to Abolish Nuclear and Mass Destruction Weapons

82. Kurdistan without Genocide

83. Lawyers for Justice in Libya

84. Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada

85. League for the Defence of Human Rights in Iran (LDDHI)

86. Legal Action Worldwide

87. Libya Crimes Watch (LCW)

88. Life campaign to abolish the death sentence in Kurdistan Network

89. Ligue Burundaise des Droits de l’Homme Iteka

90. LingvaLexa

91. Maff Network for Solidification of justice and Development of Democracy

92. Malala Fund

93. Maldivian Democracy Network (MDN)

94. Mukwege Foundation

95. Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organization in Malaysia (MERHROM)

96. National Center for Combating Violence and Abuse Against Children

97. National Forum for Human Rights

98. Organization Against Weapons of Mass Destruction in Kurdistan

99. Organization of the Justice Campaign (OJC)

100. Our Culture is Giving

101. Parliamentarians for Global Action

102. Physicians for Human Rights

103. Prevention of Crimes against Humanity Project, Columbia Law School

104. Redress

105. Refugee Consortium of Kenya

106. Repro Justice Congo

107. Sociedad de Profesionales por la Dignidad y la Justicia (IUS DIGNITAS)

108. Society for The Empowerment of People (STEP)

109. Somali Human Rights Association (SOHRA)

110. Strategic Litigation Project

111. Synergy for Justice

112. Tanzania Community Health Information and Support (TaCHIS)

113. The Arrested Lawyers Initiative

114. The Circle

115. The European Law Students’ Association (ELSA)

116. The Reckoning Project

117. The West African Transitional Justice Centre

118. TRIAL International

119. Union des Amis Socio Culturels d’Action en Developpement (UNASCAD)

120. Ukrainian Women Lawyers Association “JurFem”

121. United States International Council on Disabilities

122. Urban Morgan Institute for Human Rights, University of Cincinnati College of Law

123. Wayamo Foundation

124. Winam Chanua Dada CBO (CHADALA)

125. Women Human Rights Defenders International Coalition

126. Women’s Initiatives for Gender Justice

127. Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (UK)

128. Women’s Peace Network

129. Working Group for ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism, Singapore (MARUAH)

130. World Federalist Movement-Institute for Global Policy

131. World Without Genocide

132. Youth for Peace and Dialogue Between Cultures

133. Youth Initiative for Human Rights Croatia

134. Youth Initiative for Human Rights Serbia (YIHR Serbia)

Full declaration with endorsements can be found here