Crimes Against Humanity: Shaping the Future Convention

The project aims to offer high-quality, independent and policy-relevant legal analysis to support the negotiations towards a UN Convention on Crimes Against Humanity, and to help State delegations identify possible compromise formulations on the selected unresolved issues.

It will notably:

• Map and analyse the amendment proposals submitted by States, so that all subsequent work starts from a shared and accurate picture of the positions on the table
• Strengthen the substantive and comparative legal analysis available to State delegations on the three thematic pillars
• Provide a platform for dialogue between leading experts, academics, practitioners and diplomatic representatives
• Offer a neutral space for confidential, expert-led pre-negotiation consultations with State delegations
• Identify areas of convergence, outstanding concerns and possible compromise formulations ahead of the sessions of the Conference
• Bring together the knowledge generated throughout the project in a final scholarly and policy-oriented publication contributing to the long-term development and implementation of the future Convention

The project is organised around three thematic pillars. Each pillar combines academic research, expert discussion and diplomatic engagement, and is examined both on its own and in light of the broader architecture of the future Convention.

• Definition of crimes against humanity: preserving the acquis and assessing proposed developments: The ILC’s 2019 Draft Articles largely follow the definition in Article 7 of the Rome Statute, with a few departures, notably the omission of the definition of “gender” in Article 7(3). A key question is whether the future Convention should keep this established definition or develop it, for instance by explicitly recognising gender apartheid, reproductive violence, forced marriage and starvation. The “State or organizational policy” element and the grounds of persecution are also under discussion. The project examines the legal basis and limits of any change, and the risk of national courts applying diverging standards under the Convention and the Rome Statute.
• Settlement of disputes and the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice: Article 15 of the Draft Articles provides for negotiation first and then, failing that, referral to the ICJ at the request of one State, unless the parties agree to arbitration. Any State may also declare that it is not bound by this mechanism, which sets it apart from Article IX of the Genocide Convention, with its direct referral to the Court and no opt-out. As the ILC left the final clauses to States, the project also considers the wider treaty architecture: signature and accession, entry into force, reservations and amendment.
• Immunities of State officials: The Draft Articles do not regulate immunity. As the text stands, the future Convention would say nothing on immunity ratione personae or ratione materiae, and it contains no equivalent to Article 27(2) of the Rome Statute. This pillar explores whether and how the future Convention should address the question.

The project works as a continuous cycle of research, expert discussion and diplomatic engagement, aligned with the calendar of the negotiations. Each phase feeds into the next, allowing the work to adapt as the negotiations evolve.

The first session of the Preparatory Committee was held in New York in January 2026, and States submitted proposals for amendments to the Draft Articles by 30 April 2026. The second session, from 12 to 15 April 2027, will consider the compiled text and the organisation and methods of work of the Conference, including its rules of procedure. The Conference of Plenipotentiaries will then meet at UN Headquarters for three weeks in 2028 and three weeks in 2029.

The international expert network is designed to be as representative as possible of scientific and academic thinking on these questions, drawing on different legal traditions, doctrinal perspectives and institutional experiences.

• Baseline Mapping of State Submissions: A systematic mapping and analysis of the amendment proposals submitted by States, providing a common basis for the project’s research and consultations.
• Expert Webinar Series: A series of webinars bringing together leading experts on each thematic pillar, whose discussions inform the drafting of the background papers.
• Closed-Door State Consultations: Confidential consultations with State delegations to discuss the background papers and explore areas of convergence and possible compromise formulations.
• Greentree Retreats: Senior level retreats at Greentree for the members of the UN Missions in New York. The Greentree events will offer the representatives of the UN Missions in New York a protected space to discuss concerns and explore potential compromise formulations for the sessions of the Conference.
• Final Event and Publication: A final event presenting the project’s findings, accompanied by a scholarly and policy-oriented publication on the future Convention.

The project will produce:

• Baseline mapping papers on the amendment proposals submitted by States
• An international collaborative expert network
• An expert webinar series
• Background papers on each of the three thematic pillars
• Closed-door consultations with State delegations
• A final event and a final scholarly and policy-oriented publication

Project Lead

Paola Gaeta

Co-President of the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights and a Full Professor of International Law at the Geneva Graduate Institute

Academic and Scientific Coordinator

Victoria Priori

Academic and Scientific Coordinator

The project is co-funded by the Directorate of International Law of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), with an in-kind contribution from the Geneva Academy.