Early day motion tabled by primary sponsor Rachael Maskell (Labour), on Monday, 5 January 2026, in the House of Commons. It is signed by 19 members in total.

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Gender apartheid

That this House notes the omission of the crime against humanity of gender apartheid from the current Draft Articles on Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity; further notes that gender apartheid has long been recognised by the international community, including by the UN Secretary General; notes the distinction of this crime as unique from others, due to its ambition to maintain an institutionalised regime of systemic oppression and dehumanisation against women with systematically restricting the daily lives of women and girls through cutting them off from equal education, work, healthcare, justice, political power and movement and travel, marriage rights, erasing them from public life and in some contexts oppressing women and girls, perpetrating acts of violence, including sexual violence; is concerned about the lack of accountability this leaves, leaving many victims and survivors without justice; and notes that women and girls in Afghanistan, Iran and in other jurisdictions experience extreme forms of gender apartheid; and calls for the UK Government to seek to amend the Draft Crimes Against Humanity Convention under Article 2 of the draft articles on the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity to encompass gender apartheid and to galvanise international support for recognising gender apartheid through advancing a resolution at the UN General Assembly.

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Secondary information

Type

Early day motion

Reference

2551 

Session

2024-26

Other sponsors

Jim Shannon

Ellie Chowns

Cat Eccles

Neil Duncan-Jordan

Apsana Begum

Subjects

Crimes against humanity Women International law Oppression

Link

View this Early day motion on edm.parliament.uk