Proposed Crimes Against Humanity Treaty

The Sixth Committee’s review of a proposed CAH treaty is a critical opportunity to ensure that persons with disabilities are not left behind.

A diverse cross-section of States engaged substantively in the first session of a series of discussions on draft articles.

Old issues may resurface, and the working methods of the UN General Assembly's legal committee could again stymie progress in the end.

Adopting a resolution was a step forward, but supporting States will need to make the most of the next two years. Here's how.

Amid a new resolution, delegations will need to send a crucial signal that protections for civilians are deepening -- not withering.

The process and the International Law Commission risk irrelevance if the well-supported Draft Articles do not progress to the next phase.

Such a convention could help dispel a culture of impunity by reaffirming the gravity of such atrocities and filling gaps left by the Rome Statute.

Such a law would strengthen the prospect of the US one day seriously considering ratification of a proposed treaty.

While it contains laudable provisions, it is silent on certain fundamental issues, and some clauses set out the lowest common denominator.

Such a legal framework could be transformative for so many who have been left out or on the margins of existing mechanisms, including women.

At times the baton was dropped; at other times, drafters successfully overcame the hurdles in the process, as with the ICC Statute.

The answer is to fully enact international criminal law at the national level and to provide for its maximum reach.