| |
|
Genocide Unearthed
JANUARY 2006
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
|
In Learn More the National Geographic magazine team shares some of its best sources and other information to expand your knowledge of our featured subjects. Special thanks to the Research Division.
|
|
|
 Did You Know?
Though its roots go back to early civilizations, genocide officially became a crime just over 50 years ago. In 1948 the Convention for the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide was adopted by the United Nations; it was put into force in 1951 after two-thirds of the UN member parties ratified it. Drafted in the wake of the Holocaust, it defines and outlaws the crime of genocide. The United States did not ratify the convention until 1988—40 years after its conception, and only with the proviso that the U.S. was immune from prosecution of genocide without its consent.
During those 40 years, genocidal acts continued in Cambodia and other places, yet the UN took no action. Finally, in 1993 the UN Security Council implemented the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia. A similar tribunal was opened for genocide-related crimes in Rwanda in 1995.
While some justice has been served, these ad hoc tribunals were not the independent international court the 1948 convention had envisioned. So, in a 1998 UN conference, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court was established. The court came into force in 2002, after the agreement was ratified by 60 of the signatory countries. In that same year, after the Clinton Administraion signed the treaty in 2000, the U.S. government formally announced its intention not to ratify the treaty. Why did the U.S. pull out? The court would subject U.S. nationals to a uniform global standard of justice (for a chronology of U.S. opposition to the ICC, visit www.iccnow.org). In short, the U.S. fears it could potentially be subject to prosecution by the court.
Not only has the U.S. refused to support the court, it has also actively tried to undermine it. One example is U.S. opposition to the ICC opening trials for gross human rights abuses in the Darfur region of Sudan. In June 2005 though, the International Criminal Court opened prosecution for the killings in Darfur.
Prosecution and punishment are steps in the right direction, but where does the world stand on the prevention of genocide? In 2004, 55 world governments (including the United States) released the Stockholm Declaration on Genocide Prevention, the conclusion of an intergovernmental conference on genocide prevention. Historically, the world has not acted quickly enough to prevent genocide. While this preventative declaration speaks strongly and outlines firm commitments, it is important to note that the UN is busy with internal reforms. So, for concerned global citizens, it is imperative to recognize and support the many worldwide nongovernmental organizations dedicated to the prevention of genocide.
—Sean O'Connor
|
Top
|
Related Links
Genocide in Iraq: The Anfal Campaign Against the Kurds
hrw.org/reports/1993/iraqanfal/ANFAL.htm
Human Rights Watch put together this report considered the authoritative account of the atrocities committed against the Iraqi Kurds by Saddam Hussein's regime in the late 1980s.
Genocide Studies Program
www.yale.edu/gsp
Documenting recent and ancient atrocities, the Genocide Studies Program at Yale conducts research, seminars, and conferences on issues relating to genocide, and provides training to researchers from affected regions.
INFORCE
www.inforce.org.uk
The INFORCE foundation was born out of the collective experience of a group of forensic specialists active in the investigation of crimes against humanity, war crimes, and genocide. INFORCE personnel have worked with a variety of national and international organizations in investigating and documenting such crimes.
Prevent Genocide International
www.preventgenocide.org
This educational group aims to eliminate genocide by linking people around the world, encouraging them to speak out and actively work toward the mitigation or prevention of atrocities.
|
Top
|
Bibliography
Gellately, Robert, and Ben Kiernan. The Specter of Genocide: Mass Murder in Historical Perspective. Cambridge University Press, 2003.
Power, Samantha. A Problem From Hell: America and the Age of Genocide. Perennial, 2002.
Weitz, Eric. A Century of Genocide: Utopias of Race and Nation. Princeton University Press, 2003.
|
Top
|
NGS Resources
Nicholson, Dorinda Makanaõnalani. Remember World War II: Kids Who Survived Tell Their Stories. National Geographic Books, 2005.
Edwards, Mike W. "Eyewitness Iraq." National Geographic (November 1999), 2-27.
Hitchens, Christopher. "Struggle of the Kurds." National Geographic (August 1992), 32-61.
Niezabitowska, Malgorzata. "Remnants: The Last Jews of Poland." National Geographic (September 1986), 362-89.
White, Peter T. "Ancient Glory in Stone." National Geographic (May 1982), 552-89.
White, Peter T. "Kampuchea Wakens From a Nightmare." National Geographic (May 1982), 590-623.
|
Top
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
