The international recognition of feminicide as a crime similar to genocide
The international recognition of feminicide as a crime similar to genocide
Hybrid format: at the Geneva Press Club with Covid Certificate (Domaine de Penthes, Chemin de l’Impératrice 18, 1292 Pregny-Chambésy) and online
To participate: register here
The Geneva Press Club – Club suisse de la presse, in collaboration with The Kurdish Women’s Movement in Europe (TJK-E) and MAAT for Peace, is pleased to invite journalists and its members to a parallel event to the 48th session of the Human Rights Council with
Moderator:
Dr. Manuela Honegger
Business Mentor, CEO of Mhonegger Sàrl, a company engaged in the social & technological transformation and feminist leadership for NPO/NGOs and companies
Panellists:
Marion Böker
Expert in Human rights & gender issues, expert on women’s issues.
Ann-Kristin “Anki” Sjöberg
Co-Director and Founder of Fight for Humanity
Asya Abdullah
Member of the coordination of Kongra Star, who will report about the situation of women especially in Afrin and Rojava (The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria)
A member of the Kurdish Women’s Movement in Europe (TJK-E)
Two young women from Afrin
who were able to flee from jihadist militias
Crimes against women are among the most common crimes against humanity. We witness a clear increase of political murders perpetrated by nation-states, paramilitary forces and state-owned enterprises against female political and community leaders worldwide. Activists, intellectuals, lawyers, journalists, artists, and progressive politicians are targeted because of their leading role in defending democratic and egalitarian values. In this context, it is important that we understand the politics of feminicide as a systematic war against women and recognized it as such. The fact that feminicide is still not recognized as a crime against humanity means that states and dictators are not afraid of being held accountable. As long as feminicide is not treated as a crime against humanity, it will not be possible to truly challenge attacks on society such as genocide. It is time to put these crimes on trial at the international level, and to hold the defenders of oppressive regimes to account for the systematic murder of women.
Everywhere around the world there are continuous acts of resistance against the domination of the female body and against harassment and rape. Many are demanding accountability for the massacre of women and for the disregard and abuse of their rights. In 2020, the Kurdish Women’s Movement in Europe (TJK-E) started a campaign for the prosecution of the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The campaign « 100 reasons to prosecute Erdoğan for his feminicidal policies! » (https://100-reasons.org/), is supported by 70 women’s movements in more than 15 countries. In the first phase of the campaign, more than 200,000 signatures were collected in support. The first phase raised awareness, organized joint events and actions, enabled international networking, and launched legal initiatives with lawyers. The evidence of the 100 representative case studies of the campaign to expose the feminicidal policies of the Turkish state will officially be handed over to the UN.
The second phase of the campaign will launch with a panel during the 48th session of the HRC to start the process of international recognition of feminicide as a crime against humanity in the same way as genocide. This side event will concentrate on two cases: The first concerns the assassination of three Kurdish political activists, Sakine Cansız, Fidan Doğan, and Leyla Şaylemez, in Paris by the Turkish intelligence on January 9th, 2013. The second involves the systematic feminicide against Kurdish women by jihadist proxies backed by Erdogan’s regime in the Turkish-occupied city of Afrin in North and East Syria. On a daily basis, Kurdish women in Afrin are being tortured, raped and kidnapped. These crimes have been documented in UN reports.
The main focus of this event will be:
- The murders of three Kurdish women politicians in Paris in 2013.
- Feminicide and other war crimes committed in Afrin since the invasion by Turkish forces and their proxy militias in 2018.
- International networking and cooperation to internationally recognize feminicide and putting an end to it.
Speakers bio
Marion Böker, independent expert for human rights, since 2004 owner of the Consultancy for Human Rights & Gender Issues, Berlin (www.boeker-consult.de), works on international, regional and national level for the de facto implementation of women’s rights, human rights for individuals or groups, NGOs and organizations, administration and politics, against discrimination and human rights violation, initiator and member of UN-CEDAW-alternative reporting alliances,
She is an active member of national and international NGOs, Cuurently she is Vice president of the International Alliance of Women (IAW) and represents IAW in the board of Eueopens Women’s Lobby (EWL) in Brussels.
More: www.boeker-consult.de (chose English)
Ann-Kristin “Anki” Sjöberg, Co-Director and Founder of Fight for Humanity
She is an experienced humanitarian/human rights professional with a demonstrated history of working in the non-profit sector on issues linked to conflict, security and gender. She received her PhD in International Relations focused on Political Science in 2010 on the topic Challengers without Responsibility? Exploring Reasons for Armed Non-State Actor Use and Restraint on the Use of Violence against Civilians from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva Switzerland.
Her work has focused on research and operational work at a senior level mainly in Colombia, Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Syria. She has also worked on issues related to gender and security sector reform in Nepal, South Sudan, and West Africa, and has a strong background in policy, strategy, planning, evaluations, and contract management. She was the President of the NGO Gender and Mine Action Programme between 2011 and 2019.
Asya Abdullah
member of the coordination of Kongra Star, who will report about the situation of women especially in Afrin and Rojava. Asya Abdullah is a prominent Kurdish politician working to establish democratic autonomy in Rojava, Northern Syria. She is the current co-chair of the Movement for a Democratic Society (TEV-DEM) coalition, the former co-chair of the Democratic Union Party (PYD) during the period when ISIS attacked Kobanê. She has presented at numerous conferences to reach out to activists, academics and world leaders to garner support for the Kurdish political project in Rojava.
TJK-E
The Kurdish Women’s Movement of Europe (TJK-E) was founded in 2014. It is the confederal association of Kurdish women and their friends who have been working in parts of Europe for decades. The TJK-E works with various women’s associations, institutions, parliaments, municipalities and initiatives on the basis of democratic principles. The work also includes cooperation with ethnic organisations, women’s platforms, NGOs and other democratic organisations.
TJK-E is involved in political, legal, social, cultural, economic, scientific and also educational areas in order to make the colour, voice and will of women visible. The aim is to create an awareness that goes beyond sensitisation to overcome patriarchal and sexist systems. Among other things, women’s academies are being established for this purpose. The topics on which work is being done are broadly diversified. The TJK-E is particularly concerned to uncover violence, crimes and murders especially against women and to fight against them democratically.
The TJK-E sees achievements and all feminist struggles of the last centuries as its heritage. TJK-E supports the democratic solution of the Kurdish question, social peace and shares a democratic, ecological world view. TJK-E is particularly concerned with the problems of Kurdish women in the diaspora, carries out studies and creates solution-oriented projects.
TJK-E sees itself as an organisation that fights against patriarchal systems, racism, militarism and the destruction of nature.
Menna Bakr
Director Human Rights Mechanisms Division at Maat for Peace and also Maat’s representative to UN Geneva representative, young human rights leader who participated in
several national, regional and international consultations in relation to the youth role in protecting and promoting Women rights, Together with several youth campaigns in combating hate speech and countering discrimination over the media.
Maat for Peace, Development and Human Rights Association
Non-governmental organization registered in Egypt since 2005, seeks to employ the human rights approach, and utilize its mechanisms and tools in promoting the values and practices of social peace, development, democracy and good governance on the national level, as well as working via the UN and regional mechanisms and agencies, and in a context of networks and coalitions to advocate the promotion of peace and sustainable development policies and practice, addition to fighting all forms of violence, conflict and lack of justice with great concern to the situation in conflict region.
MAAT is in Consultative Status with the UN Economic and Social Council since 2016, and is the Northern Africa Coordinator in the NGO Major Group for Africa at the UN ECOSOC, holds observer status in the African Commission on the Human and People’s Rights of the African Union, ordinary member of the Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice “Vienna”, Co-Founder member of the International Alliance for Peace and Development “Geneva”.
For more information
Kurdish Women’s Movement in Europe
international-relations@tjk-e.com
Registration to participate online or face-to-face (only with Covid Certificate)