Excerpt of Just Security op-ed co-authored by GJC Legal Advisor Tess Graham.

In April, States took a significant step toward negotiating a specific treaty on crimes against humanity (CAH) after years of delay and procedural wrangling. If adopted, the proposed draft articles could close gaps in the architecture of international criminal and human rights law and provide a critical opportunity to advance gender justice – or regress to outdated ideas about  gender. The unprecedented week-long discussion at the United Nations offered a glimpse at the opportunities a treaty might hold to advance gender justice.

Across the five day “resumed session” of the U.N. General Assembly’s legal committee the theme of gender arose repeatedly, with many States indicating support for progressive provisions on gender-related elements of the draft articles. Others indicated a desire to revert to obsolete gender provisions, setting up potential battles over key issues. Contentious questions included whether to define “gender” within the treaty (or leave it undefined, like other treaty terms including “race” and “religion”); definitions of sexual and reproductive violations; and slavery-related crimes. States also missed some opportunities to engage on pivotal gender issues, but diplomats and civil society leaders will have additional openings to raise these issues over the coming months.

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Excerpt from Chapter 9 of "Book of the Disappeared: The Quest for Transnational Justice" from University of Michigan Press

Myanmar is a country composed of a majority (two-thirds) Burman (Bamar), largely Buddhist population and a minority comprising more than one hundred different ethnicities, with several major groups including Shan, Karen, Kachin, Rakhine, Chin, Mon, Rohingya, and Kayah. Many of these groups have “distinct cultures, languages, traditions, and sometimes religions” and “live mainly in the peripheral areas, near the borders with Bangladesh, China, India, and Thailand.” Among these populations more than one hundred languages are spoken. With respect to religion, some minorities are Buddhist along with the Burman majority and there are also groups of Christians, Hindus, and Muslims.

Against this diverse background, Myanmar’s military has a long history of violence, systematic discrimination, and policies of exclusion and marginalization. Out of unliteral power over the past decade, Myanmar’s military staged a coup in February 2021, jailing political opponents and asserting control over the country. As of this writing, the military faces immense opposition from Myanmar’s populace, who largely support the National Unity Government (NUG).

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Moderator: Akila Radhakrishnan, President of the Global Justice Center

Speakers:

• Erin Rosenberg: visiting scholar, Urban Morgan Institute for Human Rights
• M. Arsalan Suleman: Foley Hoag, legal counsel to The Gambia in its case against Myanmar at the International Court of Justice
• Naw Hser Hser: Standing Committee member of Karen Women’s Organisation (KWO)
• Tun Khin: President of the Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK (BROUK)