The Coalition for Genocide Response welcomes the decision of the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to proceed with an investigation into alleged crimes, under the jurisdiction of the Court, in relation to the situation in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, having been authorised by the ICC Appeals Chamber in March 2020. 

As announced by the Chief Prosecutor, Karim Khan QC, the investigation will focus on the actions of the Taliban and Islamic State of Khoroson (ISIS-K) in Afghanistan.

The Coalition for Genocide Response welcomes the investigations into the crimes, especially as recent months have seen evidence and serious risk of atrocity crimes, including of genocide against the Hazara community. 

Considering the recent developments in Afghanistan, and the Taliban and ISIS-K’s legacy of atrocity crimes that have flourished in impunity for years, this focus is justified. This prioritisation is further affirmed by the limited resources of the ICC.

The ICC’s mandate to prosecute high-level perpetrators where States remain unable or unwilling is one that should be applied consistently and without fear or favour: as such it must not neglect the crimes of other alleged perpetrators in the region including nationals of non-States Parties in Afghanistan at the relevant time. The ICC ought to consider atrocities allegedly perpetrated by other actors when the situation allows.

Join the new initiative to #BringBackTheYazidis.

Contact us if you wish to sign the below statement.

We, the undersigned individuals and organisations, write respectfully to urge you to take decisive steps to locate the 2,763 Yazidi women and children who have been victims of forced or involuntary disappearances and missing for seven years. There are decisive steps that the international community could, and must, take to aid the discovery and safe return of these persons. We have a moral imperative to offer whatever leadership and support we can to end this horrific situation. 

As many governments and international institutions recognised, Daesh’s murderous actions against the Yazidis constituted genocide and crimes against humanity. Their 2014 attacks on Sinjar and the Ninevah Plains forced thousands of people to flee. Thousands more were abducted: boys forced to become child soldiers, and women and children sold into sex slavery. The number of those killed by Daesh is still not known. Mass graves continue to be discovered.  

Seven years after the genocide, it is a travesty that the Yazidi women and children remain missing and their fate unknown. If they are alive, they continue to be enslaved and subjected to daily abuse. Despite findings of genocide and repeated pronouncements expressing concern for Yazidis, the international community has failed to organise any effort to locate these kidnapped individuals.

We respectfully ask that you, individually and together, take the initiative to organise a search for the missing Yazidi women and children.  We understand many of the missing may have perished, but we have a moral responsibility to find the living and provide closure to the families of those murdered.  Therefore, we call upon you to work together with allies to ensure that the missing Yazidi women and children are accounted for, partnering with like minded governments, the United Nations, the Yazidi community as well as NGOs and experts. 

While the situation is complex, there are concrete actions that would aid the search and make a substantial difference for those who are still trapped, and their families. Therefore, we call upon you to: 

• Work with partners to conduct an official search to identify the whereabouts of the missing women and children, including in the Al-Hol camp in Syria where many are believed to be held;
• Work with local partners to free all Yazidi women and children who are alive and ensure that the remains of those killed are returned to their families and given a dignified and honourable burial. 

Now is the time to put action to words. While Yazidis face many challenges, organising a search for kidnapped women and children is tangible, workable, achievable, and long overdue. We call upon you to demonstrate the moral leadership and courage necessary to push global action in the face of genocide.

Should you have any questions, please contact Dr Ewelina U Ochab (Ewelina.ochab@gmail.com), Knox Thames (knoxthames@outlook.com), Pari Ibrahim (pari.ibrahim@freeyezidi.org), Abid Shamdeen (abid@nadiasinitiative.org).

Yours sincerely,

….

On 10 August 2021, the Coalition for Genocide Response joined over 90 international organisations in an open letter to the Biden Administration calling for the formal recognition of the atrocities against the Rohingyas as genocide and crimes against humanity.

As the letter states:

‘A Rohingya genocide determination would … demonstrate a commitment to evidence-based accountability as the struggle for a truly inclusive and representative democratic Myanmar continues.

A determination would also help to ensure continued international attention on the plight of the Rohingya, while enabling the United States to mobilise additional diplomatic and economic pressure on Myanmar to shift its behaviour. This attention could offer a measure of protection for the Rohingya and others in Myanmar. It would also represent an expression of solidarity with the governments of Bangladesh and other refugee hosting countries, signalling the United States is committed both to accountability and supporting conditions for safe and voluntary return when conditions so permit.’

Read the full letter here

Commenting upon the joint initiative, Dr Ewelina Ochab, the co-founder of the Coalition for Genocide Response, said: ‘We must remember that this genocide is not over and the Rohingyas in Myanmar continue to be at risk. Leadership is urgently needed. Global action is urgently needed. We shall not wait until this genocide materializes in whole. We must name it for what it is and act.’

Read the full article here

In case you missed our last webinar on the issue of rape and sexual violence in conflict, you can now watch it here:

In case you missed it, watch our webinar on the use of starvation as a weapon of war here:

Read the new piece from our co-founder Dr Ewelina U Ochab about what is next for the atrocities against Uyghurs in Xinjiang.

A UN mechanism to collect and preserve evidence of the atrocities against the Uyghurs is the next crucial step and one that cannot be postponed. Without securing this evidence now, the prospects of justice in the future are zero.

Dr Ewelina U. Ochab, ‘What is next for the atrocities against Uyghurs in Xinjiang?’, (OxHRH Blog, May 2021), <https://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/what-is-next-for-the-atrocities-against-uyghurs-in-xinjiang>

Read it here: What is next for the atrocities against Uyghurs in Xinjiang?

Lord Alton and the Coalition for Genocide Response invite you to a webinar on: 

The Use of Starvation Against the People of Tigray 

5:00-6:00 PM BST on 22 June 2021

Zoom 

Armed conflict and mass atrocities have destroyed Tigray’s economy and food system and so pose a threat of famine. 5.7 million people are affected by this crisis, with the United Nations estimating that 4.5 million are ‘in need.’ 

Starvation of civilians is often used as a method of warfare, and as such may constitute a war crime. It is crucial to consider whether this is the case in Tigray and if so, what should be the responses. Also, the use of starvation may be seen imposing conditions of life calculated to bring about the destruction of a protected group in whole or in part, as per Article II of the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, and as such, where there is a risk of genocide, States should trigger the duty to protect. 

The panellists will discuss the issue of starvation as a war crime or as a genocidal method and the needed responses from States and the international community. 

Speakers include: 

Lord Alton of Liverpool, Cross-bench Peer at the UK House of Lords

Alex de Waal, Executive director of the World Peace Foundation and research professor at The Fletcher School at Tufts University

Aarif Abraham, barrister, Garden Court North Chambers 

Further speakers will be announced shortly. Please register here: https://StarvationInTigray.eventbrite.co.uk