Welcome to The Gender Diplomat!

🌎 Continuing last week’s prompt: how would I analyse political developments and what would I highlight if I were writing a briefing memo (dream job alert) for the world's top leaders? This is my latest self-responsibility activity, because it keeps me up to date on issues that I consider to be top priority for any professional in international security and sustainable development.

➡️ So for today, I am debriefing Member States at the UN Security Council.

🇦🇫Codifying gender apartheid: should the international community take Afghanistan to World Court?

📚Background: The Taliban have institutionalised a brutal crackdown on women and girls, with the regime issuing more than 50 decrees that prevent women from accessing education, work, healthcare and freedom of movement. Consequently, the international community has pushed for reforms to international law aimed at criminalising what amounts to gender apartheid = forms of governance (laws, policies) that systematically oppress and subjugate another gender group, both in private and public life, and in a way that benefits the perpetrators.

💭Problems: Here I highlight 1) the fact that gender apartheid is not a crime under international law; and 2) in the absence of more effective accountability mechanisms, whether the International Court of Justice (ICJ) could be the last resort to help Afghan women. Note: while there is a crime of apartheid in international law, it applies only to race, not gender. I hear you asking “but aren’t there other laws that cover gender nuances and women’s rights?”, and the answer is yes (i.e. CEDAW et al) — but these mechanisms do not capture the systematic and institutionalised deterioration of women’s rights in Afghanistan.

🔄Implications: If gender apartheid is not codified, there remains a vacuum of solutions, reparations and accountability for what should be a crime against humanity. This wouldn’t require a new treaty, but rather its specification as a crime in the draft Crimes against Humanity Convention. Codifying gender apartheid would also encourage States to look at security in a holistic way: it's not just about criminalisation per se, but also about how gender insecurity hinders the stability, economy and development of entire nations.

Also, while the ICC could charge senior Taliban leaders, it would not be sufficient to end State-sponsored crimes. Afghanistan acceded to the Rome Statute in 2003 and is a state party to CEDAW, meaning the international community must continue to explore this perspective. Then the “universal legal relevance” of gender apartheid could be explored through State vs. State options. It is unclear how an ICJ case would unfold because the Taliban are not recognised as legitimate government, but it could improve things in the short-term: for instance, when South Africa recently confronted Israel, the ICJ issued provisional measures to prevent genocide. As such, it would be enough for the States that have already denounced human rights violations to increase the pressure on Afghanistan at the ICJ.

🧠Reflections: I now play devil's advocate and ask, even if gender apartheid is codified in international law, how will prosecution unfold? What are the main issues arising from its codification in international law? How valid and effective are the common counter-arguments regarding jurisdiction and cultural sensitivity? (I really don't think there's much room for "sensitivity" arguments when it comes to gender apartheid — it is simply segregation and subordination, and a crime against humanity).

⚡ Growing in and out of your 9 to 5

I’ve upgraded this section to include cool jobs. As policy and principle, I only share paid work opportunities.

JOBS

• Social impact intern, MAZE Impact

• Junior Researcher Education, PPMI

• Project Assistant, CEPS

• EU Programme Assistant, IOM

GROWTH

• Take your envy, decode it and turn it into positive action (TED).

• Back by popular demand, here’s my 2.0 Notion tip: The Productivity Method.

• New approach to building your personal brand (Harvard Business Review).

• Interview with UNOPS Director Jorge Moreira da Silva (in portuguese).

Feedback, ideas and synergies are encouraged 📥
[email protected]
See you next week!👩🏻‍💻