Abstract
Many commentators have celebrated international criminal law’s progress on gender issues, focusing on decisions that include serious forms of sexual violence within the scope of the law. Though these updates to the doctrine may be commendable, this chapter raises a broader ongoing concern: the gendered structure of international criminal law that diverts attention from other significant harms that women endure as a result of violent conflict. The chapter examines the accountability gaps suffered by female forced migrants fleeing situations of widespread violence to expose the gendered nature of the international criminal law framework. It walks through potential avenues to address and prevent violence against forced migrant women, describing the promise and peril of relying on international criminal law and offering alternative approaches.
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An earlier version of this chapter was published as Questioning Hierarchies of Harm: Women, Forced Migration, and International Criminal Law in 11 Int’l Crim. L. Rev. 463 (2011).
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Ramji-Nogales, J., DerOhannesian, D. (2019). Female Forced Migrants: Accountability Gaps in International Criminal Law. In: Reilly, N. (eds) International Human Rights of Women. International Human Rights. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-8905-3_30
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