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3 SOAS L.J. 55 (2016)
Persecution and Protection of Sexual and Gender Minorities under Article 7(1)(h) of the Rome Statute

handle is hein.journals/soas3 and id is 65 raw text is: Persecution and Protection of Sexual and Gender Minorities under Article 7(1)(h) of the Rome Statute Andrew Sumner Hagopian* While LGBTI discrimination and persecution violates international human rights law, the degree to which sexual and gender minorities are protected under international criminal law remains ambiguous. This Article attempts to clarify the position of sexual and gender minorities as protected groups within the context of the crime against humanity of persecution. It will be argued that sexual and gender minorities may, in some cases, be considered groups on political or gender grounds, as listed in Article 7(1)(h) of the Rome Statute. Despite increasingly robust protection under international law more generally, sexual and gender minorities do not yet meet the required standard to be considered discrete groups within the Statute's category of 'other grounds universally recognised as impermissible under international law'. I. INTRODUCTION Crimes against humanity occupy a unique position within international criminal law. Prosecutions for crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court (ICC) 'may assume a preventive role'1 and 'may serve as the predicate for ICC intervention before war and its accompanying atrocities completely overwhelm a civilian population'.2 The crime against humanity of persecution, in particular, was expanded considerably with the adoption of the Rome Statute.3 The general scope of its definition, 'the intentional and severe deprivation of fundamental rights contrary to international law by reason of the identity of the group or collectivity', allows it to contend with a wide range of * Andrew Sumner Hagopian recently completed an MA in International Law with Distinction from SOAS, University of London. He obtained his undergraduate degree from the University Professors Program at Boston University. Andrew would like to thank Dr Kate Grady, Dr Kevin Heller and Dr Maria Frederica Moscati for their valuable insight. 1 Leila Nadya Sadat, 'Crimes Against Humanity in the Modern Age' (2013) 107 American Journal of International Law 334. 2 ibid. I ibid 352; Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (adopted 17 July 1998, entered into force I July 2002) (Rome Statute) 2187 UNTS 3.

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