The City Law School’s Dr Aldo Zammit Borda speaks at the conference at the International Institute of Social Studies, The Hague.
By Mr Shamim Quadir (Senior Communications Officer), Published (Updated )
Reproductive violence has long been a critical yet underexamined issue within conflicts, often overshadowed by other forms of wartime atrocity.
This type of violence, which includes forced impregnation, sterilisation, and other abuses, carries profound consequences for individuals and societies alike, disrupting generational continuity and societal structures.
Recognising the need for a focused legal discourse on this issue, the inaugural Expert Conference on Reproductive Violence in International Criminal Law (ICL) convened on Tuesday 11 June at the International Institute of Social Studies, The Hague.
The conference brought together a diverse group of experts, including jurists, academics, and survivors, aiming to highlight and address the gaps in ICL concerning these severe human rights violations. It was hosted by Dr Rosemary Grey, Sydney Law School, The University of Sydney; Women’s Initiatives for Gender Justice; International Institute of Social Studies; Legal Mobilization Platform; and Global Justice Center.
The event marked a significant step towards recognising and prosecuting reproductive violence, striving to ensure such atrocities are no longer sidelined in the international legal arena.
Dr Aldo Zammit Borda, Reader in Law at The City Law School, was a key speaker at the event. He highlighted the historical use of reproductive violence as a tool of war and oppression. He argued that, despite its profound impact on victims and societies, the international legal community has largely remained silent on the issue. He noted that the silence persists even though there has been an increased focus on conflict-related sexual violence over the past two decades.
The Conference was addressed by Judge Luz del Carmen Ibáñez Carranza, a Judge of the International Criminal Court (ICC), who has worked extensively on gender justice and who presided over the Appeals Chamber in the Ongwen case. Ongwen was a landmark case at the ICC because it was the first case to result in a conviction for the reproductive violence harm of forced pregnancy.
The Non-Recognition of Reproductive Violence in History
During his presentation, Dr Zammit Borda noted how reproductive violence has been a recurring feature in conflicts throughout recent history, yet has often been overlooked in terms of criminal charges. He noted the historical invisibility of such acts in international criminal justice contexts, despite their frequent occurrence.
For example, despite the acknowledgment of sexual slavery and related reproductive abuses during World War II in the Asia-Pacific region, these acts were not charged by the Tokyo Tribunal. However, when the Women’s International War Crimes Tribunal – a people’s tribunal – was established some 50 years later, it revealed the repeated forced abortions and other reproductive harms experienced by “comfort woman” taken as slaves under Japanese captivity.
Dr Zammit Borda argued that this lack of historical oversight has led to significant knowledge and accountability deficits in handling reproductive violence.
While Nazi Germany's enforced sterilisation programs received some attention during the Nuremberg Trials, he shared how many other instances, especially in non-Western conflicts, have been ignored. For instance, during the Bangladesh Liberation War, acts of forced impregnation occurred, and post-conflict, a large-scale abortion and adoption program was implemented, often without the consent of the women involved. Dr Zammit Borda suggests that that this highlights a broader pattern: the neglect of reproductive violence in formal judicial mechanisms, underscoring an urgent need for enhanced understanding and accountability to bridge these critical gaps in ICL.
Reflecting on the conference, Dr Zammit Borda said: