What is Genocide?

Genocide has occurred countless times throughout history. However, understanding genocide is an often difficult and politically charged task. Therefore, studying the origins of the term "genocide," some examples of genocide, the reasons for genocide, the prosecution of genocide, and genocide denial is necessary to better understand genocide in its totality.

Table Of Contents

The Origins of the Term and Definition

The term "genocide" was coined by a Polish lawyer of Jewish descent named Raphael Lemkin in the 1944 book Axis Rule in Occupied Europe. He did this after witnessing countless atrocities against Poles, particularly Polish Jews, which he believed demonstrated the Nazis' intent to annihilate the Polish people. This intent was demonstrated in the following ways:

1. Mass murders;
2. Inflicting bodily and mental harm;
3. Making Polish living conditions unbearable;
4. Forced birth control;
5. Transferring Polish children to German families

The United Nations (UN) adopted a more universal version of this definition at the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, a convention that codified genocide as an international crime. Article II states the definition as follows:

In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:

1. Killing members of the group;
2. Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;
3. Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
4. Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;
5. Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group

While generally accepted, this definition has also been criticized. For instance, some, like Adrian Gallager, argue that it is too narrow, pointing to how it leaves out economic and gendered groups. The notion of what it means to "destroy" has also been questioned since Lemkin himself likely meant it in a broader sense than mass murder. Specifically, Lemkin spoke about the Nazis' attempt to destroy Polish culture. All of this is to say that while there is a specific definition according to the UN, how to define "genocide" is still heavily debated. These debates are important to keep in mind when considering examples of genocide, why genocide occurs, and genocide denial.

Examples of Genocide

Below are two well-known examples of genocide:

The Holocaust

The Holocaust can broadly be defined as the mass murder of Jews, Slavs, Romani, and many other groups during World War Two, though some argue it began years before that. Indeed, per the definition of genocide, the notion that it began earlier has some credence. For instance, once the Nazis came to power in 1933, they initially tried to make life unbearable for Jews by forcing them to leave Germany. This came in the form of boycotts of Jewish-owned businesses and legislation banning sexual relationships between Jews and "Aryans." Discrimination eventually progressed into open violence, the most notable example of which was the 1938 November Pogrom. After the war began, Jews were then forced into ghettos. However, the cost of maintaining these spaces meant that ghettos were never going to be "the final solution."

After a brief discussion about deporting Jews to Madagascar, the full-on killings began. In 1941, Germany invaded the Soviet Union. This invasion was genocidal in nature. Hitler's conception of Lebensraum in the east for Germans necessitated the violent removal of Slavs from Poland and the Soviet Union. Furthermore, during the invasion, paramilitary squads known as Einsatzgruppen followed the German Army. The purpose of these squads was to round up Jews and make them dig their own graves before shooting them. Finally, the extermination camps, the largest of which was Auschwitz, opened in 1941 and 1942. Through the usage of Zyklon B in the gas chambers, thousands could be and were killed in seconds. By the end of the war, 6 million Jews, 7.8 million Soviets, 1.8 million Poles, and between 250,000 and 500,000 Romani were killed in the Holocaust. In total, about 17 million people were murdered.

The Rwandan Genocide

To understand the Rwandan Genocide, it is necessary to comprehend the country's history. Rwanda's demography consists of two main ethnic groups, the Hutus and the Tutsis--the former compromising 85 percent and the latter 14 percent. From the 15th century to the 19th century, the Tutsis ruled over the Hutus. However, the scramble for Africa in the late 1800s saw both Germany and Belgium colonize the country and project their power through the Tutsis. But, once Rwanda became independent in the early 1960s, Hutu extremists, angry due to the years of persecution, carried out a series of massacres against their former rulers. Thousands of Tutsi refugees subsequently fled the country. The hatred between the two groups was further entrenched when, in 1973, General Juvénal Habyarimana staged a coup and established a Hutu supremacist state.

By the 1990s, Tutsi refugees had organized into a coherent fighting force called the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF). Headed by Paul Kagame, they attempted to return home. This led to the Arusha Accords on August 4th, 1993, which established the basis for power-sharing between Hutus and Tutsis--an agreement that angered Hutu extremists. Thus, on April 6th, 1994, President Habyarimana's plane was mysteriously shot down, killing everyone on board. That night, the genocide began. Between April and July 1994, Tutsis and Hutu moderates were shot, hacked to death with machetes, or killed in numerous other horrific ways by the Rwandan military, neighbors, colleagues, and family members. The killings ended on July 18th when the RPF, which invaded the country upon the outbreak of the genocide, captured the capital of Kigali and declared a unilateral ceasefire. In 100 days, 800,000 were slaughtered.

Reasons Why Genocide Happens

When learning about examples of genocide, one natural question arises: why? How could anyone believe that the destruction of an entire group of people could be justified? This question is impossible to answer, given the scope of this article. Nonetheless, there are at least two fairly clear preconditions for genocide. These will be demonstrated by using the Rwandan Genocide as an example.

First, longstanding tensions between groups like the Hutus and the Tutsis lay the foundation for genocide. Thereafter, a particular event, like the Arusha Accords and the subsequent shooting down of President Habyarimana's plane, can serve as the sparkplug. Second, and related to these historical tensions, genocide requires the victims to be dehumanized. Indeed, when someone is seen as less than human, it becomes much easier to justify doing them harm. This can again be seen in the Rwandan Genocide, with the murder of Tutsi men being compared to "bush clearing" and the murder of Tutsi women being compared to "pulling out the...bad weeds". In short, while there are many reasons why genocides happen, two of the most important include longstanding historical animosity and dehumanization of victims.

Prosecutions of Genocidaires

The first major prosecution of the perpetrators of genocide (genocidaires) occurred in the form of the Nuremberg Trials. This saw a tribunal of judges from the Allies (the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, and France) try Nazis for their role in atrocities during the Second World War. About 5000 people were prosecuted, either in the Nuremberg Trials themselves or in trials against lower-level perpetrators, with around 800 death sentences being given out and 490 people being executed. This was the arguable beginning of meaningful international law. Furthermore, these trials paved the way for the 1948 UN Genocide Convention.

Despite the Nuremberg Laws and the Genocide Convention establishing a precedent for prosecuting perpetrators of genocide, there have been few instances where genocidaires have been held accountable by the International Criminal Court (ICC). Indeed, only three legally recognized genocides since the 1948 convention have led to trials: the Cambodian Genocide (1975-1979), the Rwandan Genocide (1994), and the Bosnian Genocide (1995). Furthermore, out of these prosecutions, there have been relatively few indictments; as of 2018, 93, 191, and two for Rwanda, Bosnia, and Cambodia, respectively. This lack of action is perhaps surprising given the multitude of events over the past 80 years that qualify as genocidal. Some examples include the displacement and murdering of Yazidis by the Islamic State from 2014-2017, the treatment of Kurds in Saddam Hussein's Iraq from 1988-1991, and Myanmar's treatment of its Rohingya people since 2016.

It is impossible to know the exact reasons why these cases have not been prosecuted without looking at them individually. However, generally, it can be blamed on the seeming reluctance of member states to translate their commitments into actions, painting a picture of an international legal system that is incapable of consistently upholding its self-proclaimed values and laws.

South Africa's Attempt to Prosecute Israel for Palestinian Genocide In 2023

Although there has been a notable lack of prosecution of extreme events in the last eighty years, this is not to say that there have been no attempts to prosecute genocide or possible genocides. Perhaps the most well-known recent example is South Africa's case against Israel. The allegations were that Israel had committed and was continuing to commit genocide against the Palestinians during its incursion into the Gaza Strip, an invasion that began after Hamas, the ruling political movement in Gaza, attacked Israel on October 7th, 2023. Israel vehemently denied these allegations, claiming that it was acting in self-defense. The case lasted for about a month, beginning on December 29th, 2023, and ending on January 26th, 2024. The ruling was indecisive, with the ICJ stating that it was plausible that Israel was committing genocide. However, both Israel and South Africa viewed this ruling as a victory.

Genocide Denial

Every genocide has those who either wish to downplay its significance or deny its occurrence at all. Thus, the question arises: why is this the case? Some, like the president of the International Center for Transitional Justice, David Tolbert, posit that genocide denial is the culmination of the genocidal process, with this new telling of history completely eliminating a group of people--including the event that resulted in their annihilation. Another reason for denial is that admitting to genocide can be embarrassing and damaging to an idealized perception of national identity. This is perhaps one of the motivations behind the ultra-nationalist Turkish government's continual denial of the Armenian Genocide, in which between 600,000 and 1.2 million Armenians were killed by the Ottoman Empire in World War I.

Finally, there are often political reasons for genocide denial. This can again be seen in the case of the Armenian Genocide. For decades, American politicians refused to use the word "genocide" when discussing the Ottoman treatment of Armenians during World War I. Pressure from Turkish lobbyists and threats from the Turkish government were the major reasons for this refusal. Indeed, in one instance, Turkey threatened to deny the United States access to vital Turkish military bases if it recognized the genocide. Ultimately, only in 2019 did the United States Congress pass a resolution recognizing the genocide. Furthermore, on Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day in 2021, a press release by President Joe Biden also declared the event a genocide.

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, while genocide has occurred countless times throughout history, the term itself was only coined in the mid-20th century and is still heavily debated. Two major examples of genocide include the Holocaust and the Rwandan Genocide. Some of the reasons why genocide occurs include longstanding historical animosity and dehumanization. Furthermore, despite there being many genocides since the Second World War, few perpetrators have been brought to justice. Finally, while genocide is sadly common, its denial is equally as common. All these factors paint a picture of a recurring event that is equal parts horrifying, tragic, and complex.