First conviction for gender persecution at ICC

[Imnobody4]

Small steps but still welcome:

The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court welcomes today’s historic conviction of Mr Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman (also known as Ali Kushayb), a senior leader of the pro-government Janjaweed militia, for war crimes and crimes against humanity. This is the first conviction in the Situation in Darfur, Sudan, and the first in a situation that the UN Security Council referred to the Court. The case also represents the first conviction for gender-based persecution at the Court.

https://www.icc-cpi.int/news/statement-icc-office-prosecutor-conviction-mr-abd-al-rahman

First, Mr Abd-Al-Rahman was found guilty of rape as a war crime and a crime against humanity, among other gender-based crimes. The judges ruled that the attack resulted in the commission of rapes of women and girls, causing profound physical, cultural and social harm to victims. With this judgment, the Office resolves to continue pursuing its policy commitment to effectively investigate and prosecute gender-based crimes.

Is “gender-based” the technical term?

Those crimes seem sex-based to me.

Edit: I see that’s what the article refers to.

It goes on to say this (my emphasis):

Second, Mr Abd-Al-Rahman was convicted of the crime against humanity of persecution of males from the Fur tribe on political, ethnic and gender grounds. This decision recognises the intersecting nature of multiple forms of discrimination wherein Fur males were specifically targeted.

This follows a previous disappointing prosecution.
Recent feminist progress in ending impunity and advancing justice for victims of sexual and gender-based violence was reversed by the verdict on Al Hassan’s crimes following the 2012 invasion of Timbuktu by Ansar Dine and Al Qaeda in the Magreb (AQIM) forces in Mali. Al Hassan, the militant de facto chief of Islamic police during AQIM’s occupation, was charged with multiple war crimes and crimes against humanity, including forced marriage, rape, sexual slavery, and the first-ever prosecution for persecution on gender grounds. Expectations that recent advances in gender justice at the ICC would continue in this landmark case evaporated when the Trial Chamber acquitted Al Hassan of all sexual and gender-based crimes committed during his nine-month reign of terror.

Thank you for highlighting this

Thanks Imnobody

Thanks, Imnobody4. Baby steps but significant. Hope there is a meaningful punishment to go with the conviction and that the Office moves on to Afghanistan next.

good news indeed
lets hope it gets LOTS of publicity

Thanks for posting this, and good to hear.

But this certainly isn't the first conviction, and wonder if all this gender language is confusing the issue.

Rape as a weapon of war has been recognised as a crime for some time and the first conviction was in 2016 https://news.un.org/en/story/2016/03/525132-un-welcomes-iccs-first-conviction-rape-war-crime

Or maybe there is something in this judgement about the treatment of women overall, not just about sexual violence.

Or is the use of the word first in relation to Sudan / Darfur

This is the first conviction in the Situation in Darfur, Sudan, and the first in a situation that the UN Security Council referred to the Court.

Edited - just seen that this is the case was overturned as mentioned by OP.

via AI

While the International Criminal Court (ICC) has heard evidence related to rape as a weapon of war in several cases, it has secured a conviction for this specific charge only once

However, this conviction was later overturned on appeal.

Cases with charges related to rape as a weapon of war

Several cases brought before the ICC have included charges of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), such as rape, sexual slavery, and forced pregnancy. Prominent examples include:

• Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC): In this context, sexual violence was part of mass atrocity crimes.
• Uganda: Cases involving the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) have included sexual and gender-based violence charges.
• Central African Republic (CAR): Militia groups have been accused of widespread sexual violence.
• Darfur, Sudan: Widespread sexual and gender-based violence has been a feature of the conflict in this region.

Conviction and subsequent acquittal

The first and only time the ICC convicted an individual for rape as a weapon of war was in 2016:

• Jean-Pierre Bemba: In 2016, the ICC convicted former Congolese Vice President Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including rape, committed by his militia in the CAR. This was a landmark judgment, particularly because it was the first conviction at the ICC for crimes of sexual violence and the first conviction based on command responsibility for such crimes.
• Acquittal on appeal: In 2018, the Appeals Chamber overturned Bemba's conviction on all charges, including sexual violence. The acquittal was not based on the facts of the rape, but on legal errors made during the original trial, particularly regarding the standard of command responsibility for a distant commander.

Challenges to prosecuting sexual violence

Successfully prosecuting rape as a weapon of war at the ICC faces numerous challenges:

• High evidentiary standards: Prosecutors often struggle to prove sexual violence is part of a widespread, systematic, or strategic plan, particularly when linking senior leaders to the acts of lower-ranking subordinates.
• Underreporting and victim testimony: Due to social stigma, fear of retaliation, and trauma, sexual violence is massively underreported. Even when victims come forward, testifying can be psychologically devastating.
• Lack of prioritization: In some early cases, the ICC was criticized for prioritizing other war crimes over sexual violence charges, viewing them as too difficult to prosecute.
• Political pressure: State non-cooperation can stall or derail cases, such as in the cases of Uhuru Kenyatta and Simone Gbagbo, who faced sexual violence charges that were ultimately dropped or not transferred to the ICC.

Key cases and developments in jurisprudence

Other ICC cases have included charges of sexual violence, contributing to international jurisprudence despite the lack of a final conviction for rape as a weapon of war:

• Dominic Ongwen: The ICC convicted former LRA commander Dominic Ongwen for numerous crimes, including the crime against humanity of forced pregnancy.
• Bosco Ntaganda: This case marked the first time an ICC defendant faced sexual violence charges. The final judgment included convictions for rape and sexual slavery against women and children.

While the Bemba acquittal was a setback, the ICC continues to prioritize sexual and gender-based crimes, and the legal framework for prosecuting these offenses has significantly evolved since the establishment of international criminal tribunals.

I think it's a broader crime which is allowing arrest warrants for the Taliban. For example
The first prosecution which failed, Al Hassan, is believed to have committed a crime during the occupation of Timbuktu.[2] In this case, women's freedom was constricted by corporal punishment for dress code violations. Additionally, there was forced marriage of women to the occupying forces.

-'The ICC considers gender persecution a crime against humanity under the Rome Statute, encompassing widespread, systematic attacks targeting individuals based on their gender, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity, such as the systematic deprivation of fundamental rights like education and bodily autonomy for women and girls. The ICC Prosecutor's 2025 request for arrest warrants against Taliban leaders for persecution of women, girls, and LGBTQI+ individuals in Afghanistan marks a significant step in holding perpetrators accountable for gender-based crimes.'

Thanks:

... encompassing widespread, systematic attacks targeting individuals based on their gender, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity, such as the systematic deprivation of fundamental rights like education and bodily autonomy for women and girls. ...

Hadn't realised it was as wide as that.

Makes you wonder why more cases haven't been brought in some South American countries.

Well maybe not, as someone has to be motivated enough to not just start the process but continue to push it through the process.

I'm assuming their has to be a war???

I read it as not:

The ICC considers gender persecution a crime against humanity under the Rome Statute, encompassing widespread, systematic attacks targeting individuals based on their gender, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity, such as the systematic deprivation of fundamental rights like education and bodily autonomy for women and girls.

And then there is this:

ICC issues arrest warrants for Taliban leaders for persecuting women and girls
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c98jn0ry8jqo

I'm beginning to realise how fragile my grasp of the United Nations is. This is all very new.

Karim Khan Chief Presecuter said
'On 28 November 2024, my Office received a referral on the Situation in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (Situation in Afghanistan), from the following six State Parties: Chile, Costa Rica, Spain, France, Luxembourg, and Mexico. In the referral, the States Parties express their concern about the severe deterioration of the human rights situation in Afghanistan, especially for women and girls and request my Office to consider the crimes committed against women and girls after the Taliban takeover in 2021 within its ongoing investigation in the Situation in Afghanistan.'

UK wasn't among them but did give support. I'm seeing Afghanistan as a war zone as its all very unstable.

'The International Criminal Court (ICC) has jurisdiction over four core international crimes: genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression, but only when committed by nationals of or on the territory of a State Party to the Rome Statute, or when a situation is referred by the UN Security Council. The ICC serves as a court of last resort, acting only when national authorities are unable or unwilling to investigate and prosecute these crimes themselves.