韩国裸舞

From 2012-2013, the residents of Timbuktu, Mali lived under the control of Ansar Dine and al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (鈥淎QIM鈥�). During this occupation and life under Sharia law, women and girls lived under the imposition of rules including a gender specific dress code and curfew. Penalties resulted in the detention of women and girls, . There were also many imposed by Ansar Dine/AQIM. The and punishment impacted women鈥檚 ability to earn money, pursue an education, and even leave their homes.

Gender persecution is a form of gendered based violence (鈥淕BV鈥�) recognized by the wherein women suffer intentional and severe deprivations of fundamental rights contrary to international law. Given the harsh treatment of women during this period in Timbuktu, the International Criminal Court (鈥淚CC鈥�) released for the first ever case of gender persecution brought before the court. However, the outcome fell short of what and legal scholars .

Al Hassan, a member of Ansar Dine and the de facto chief of the Islamic police of the AQIM, was with thirteen counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes, including charges of both religious and gender persecution. On June 26, 2024, a deeply divided Chamber composed of three judges at the ICC acquitted Al Hassan of all charges related to GBV, including gender persecution. The majority of the Chamber believed the crimes had occurred because women and girls in particular had their fundamental rights violated during the occupation. However, Al Hassan was ultimately not found criminally responsible for gender persecution. Individual judges of the Chamber found that GBV could not be considered part of the common purpose of Ansar Dine/AQIM. A second judge, in dissent, found that the defense of necessity applied, thereby removing liability for the charges of GBV. The outcome was that Al Hassan was convicted of religious persecution however not enough judges found there was criminal responsibility for gender persecution.

In this case, the Chamber acknowledged the intersectional motivations behind discrimination, occurring between religion, gender, and race. The Chamber acknowledged first that women and girls were targeted because of their gender in addition to, and in the context of, religious targeting. Secondly, they acknowledged that darker skinned women received the brunt of this treatment. This is key in recognizing that . However, the outcome of this case does not ultimately recognize the historical or intersectional roots of discrimination and persecution by failing to convict on gender persecution. Perpetuating the invisibility of the racial and gendered aspects of persecution and GBV reinforces the idea that . Transitional justice mechanisms must both recognize and hold perpetrators accountable for crimes that straddle the intersections of race, religion, and gender. Without ensuring the recognition of this intersectionality, discrimination intensified by conflict could through the reinforcement of racist and sexist beliefs from peacetime.

The inclusion of GBV in the Rome Statute was a positive achievement but has not been As such, the current legacy of Prosecutor v Al Hassan, as the first case at the ICC to address gender persecution, joins a long line of cases allowing alleged wrongdoers to evade responsibility for GBV. In this case, the flaw lies in the failure to acknowledge how a single persecutory act may have an intersectional discriminatory effect. Recognizing the links between gender and religious persecution is necessary to achieve accountability for GBV and gender persecution.

Analysis of the Dissents

Judge Akane鈥檚 dissent acquitted Al Hassan of gender persecution and all crimes of GBV. She ruled that the Ansar Dine/AQIM did not have a common purpose to target women based on their gender. While Ansar Dine/AQIM formed a 鈥榞roup鈥� with a common purpose within the meaning of Article 25(3)(d) of the Rome Statute, Judge Akane finds the purpose was to 鈥� Therefore, the GBV experienced by women in Timbuktu was the result of 鈥溾�� which cannot attract criminal responsibility for Al Hassan as the de facto police chief. This dissent is harmful and a disappointment for advocates and jurists seeking to . Viewing the facts in this way perpetuates rape myths, because the crimes are viewed as 鈥渞andom acts鈥� rather than systematic crimes. This absolves accountability for the actions of GBV and for creating the coercive environment authorized by the Ansar Dine/AQIM to control residents.

The second dissent to the finding of gender persecution that absolves Al Hassan of criminal responsibility takes a more individualized approach but changes the accepted interpretation of law. Judge Mindua鈥檚 dissent applies the defense of duress and mistake of law to exculpate Al Hassan for all charges in this case, including for criminal responsibility with respect to the crime of gender persecution. Judge Mindua does not apply , maintaining that this would unnecessarily exclude cases in which the harm is merely an abstract and non-immediate danger. As a result, Judge Mindua finds the accepted definition of duress is too narrow and rids duress of all meaning. Therefore, despite not identifying a concrete threat or discussing proportionality, all required for the currently accepted application of duress, Judge Mindua finds Al Hassan not criminally responsible on all charges. This is pivotal for his acquittal because otherwise, Judge Mindua forms the majority with judge Prost on the actus reus aspect for gender persecution.

Due to the deep divisions across the three judges in the Chamber, Al Hassan was convicted of religious persecution but not gender persecution. What remains concerning about the acquittal is the Chamber鈥檚 finding鈥攚ithout convicting鈥攖hat persecution did occur on the basis of gender in addition to, and in the context of, religious targeting. The willingness to convict on religious persecution but not gender also appears to miss the insight that religion can inform socially permissible rules for gender expression and the perpetuation of rape myths. In turn, this reinforces the . The failure to make the connection between religious and gender persecution contributes to the perpetuation of rape myths which were inherent in the dissent, shielding from criminal liability Ansar Dine/AQIM鈥檚 authorization of a coercive environment to control residents.

This case is being appealed while it proceeds through the sentencing procedures of the ICC. Therefore, despite the initial failure to convict gender persecution, there remains an opportunity to recognize the severity of GBV, the connections between religious and gender persecution, and close the impunity gap for the women of Timbuktu.

Laura Robinson is a third-year JD/BCL candidate at the 韩国裸舞 Faculty of Law. She is from the unceded Mi'kmaq, Wolastoqiyik, and Passamaquoddy in New Brunswick. Laura has also earned a BA(hons) from St. Thomas University and an MA in Global Governance from the Balsillie School of International Affairs. She previously worked accompanying transitional justice cases in Guatemala with the Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network.