Genocide
What it is, Where it
is happening, and
How you can STOP
it…
The Causes of
Genocide
Genocide Defined…
A form of one-sided mass
killing in which a state or other
authority intends to destroy a
group, as that group and
membership in it are defined
by the perpetrators.- By Frank
Chalk and Kurt Jonasson
Genocide has to consist of acts
committed with intent to destroy,
in whole or in part, a national,
ethnical, racial or religious
group. –Genocide Convention
Genocide Map
Examples of Genocide…
174 million people
killed throughout the
world’s history
Chiang Kai-Shek =10
million deaths.
Lenin and Stalin =6
million citizens and
foreigners.
…Cambodian Genocide
Pol Pot rule from 1975-1979
Wanted a communist peasant farming society
Lead to the death of 25% of the country’s
population.
8 Steps of Genocide
Classification
Symbolization
Dehumanization
Organization
Polarization
Preparation
Extermination
Denial
Sociological Aspects…
Fall of a government
Refugees
Destabilization of a
region for generations
Politics and morals
Hobbes: “Hereby it is
manifest that during the
time men live without a
common power to keep
them all in awe, they are
in that condition which
is called war, and such
a war is everyman
against every man.”
…Psychological Aspects
Hobbes:
“…passions, which
are the same in all
men,- desire, fear,
hope…”
Victims of genocide
suffer from trauma
Lose sense of trust
Frustrations
Revenge
“We” and also “us vs.
them”
The Sudanese
Conflict
Background…
Who: The conflict in Darfur
is between two major
ethnic groups: the Arab
Northerners
(Janjaweed militia) and
the southern non-Arab
Africans
Where: The civil war is
taking place in western
Sudan, primarily
concentrated in Darfur
…Background
When: The conflict
began in February of
2003
Why: Although portrayed
by the media as a racial
and religious dispute,
the war is based on:
“competition between
farmers and nomadic
cattle herders who
compete for scarce
resources”
How did this all begin?
Origins of the Conflict:
-Who: (non-Arab) Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa Vs. (Arab) Baggara
-Arabs and Zaghawa are nomadic herdsmen
-The Fur and Masalit peoples are agriculturalists
What does this all mean?
it means…
Disputes over access to land and water
Government Involvement
Genocide is motivated by 3 factors:
-Power
-Hatred
-Greed
Sudan’s government, being
primarily Arab, dislikes Darfur’s
“black African” farmers
“Janjaweed shares the hatred
towards Darfur’s farmers and is in favor
of exterminating them in order to selfishly
gain control of their land.”
Reports show that the government
is directly involved in supplying
Janjaweed Militia with “arms,
communications, salaries, and
uniforms”-Human Rights Watch
…at least 14 people die an hour
The average number of people that die a day
400,000 The percentage of people which humanitarian aid
has been able to help
2,000,000 The number
70% of people
who have
The number of been
people who will die murdered
in the coming since 2003
months because of
a lack of food
The number of >500
refugees that have
fled the country 1,000,00
The percentage of 0
murders under the
age of 5 20%
The Problem Of
World
Intervention
US and World Reactions…
The Holocaust
Anti-Semitism
Depression
Lack of
involvement until
US soil attacked
…US and World Reactions
The Rwandan
Genocide
“intertribal violence”-
instead of Genocide
US ignorance of
atrocities
UN ignored warnings
UN removed troops
Somalia conflict fears
Lack of US funds and
military personnel
…US and World Reactions
The Sudanese Conflict
US declared it GENOCIDE and
“worst humanitarian conflict today”
World leaders call it “Chaos”
UN economic sanctions on oil
US administration pushing for
NATO involvement
China refuses because of
personal interests
USAID is currently on site in
Sudan
Global Awareness
61% of Americans prefer UN humanitarian aid vs. UN
arms
58% of Americans prefer US military involvement to UN
military involvement
Only 36% of African people are aware of the situation in
Sudan
UN Defined Genocide:
The Genocide Conventions
defines genocide as any act
committed with the idea of
destroying in whole or in
part a national, ethnic,
racial or religious group
Killing members of the
group
Causing serious bodily or
mental harm to members of
the group
UN Defined Genocide:
The Genocide Convention, unlike most other human rights
treaties, doesn't establish an expert committee, or an
organization to monitor its provisions. Instead, it allows any
country that is party to the Convention to ask the relevant
parts of the UN to take appropriate action (according to the
UN Charter) to prevent or stop acts of genocide.
…UN Peace Keeping
Begins in security council
Months of debate regarding severity
6-9 months of preparation after
approval
Gradual deployment problems
Military observers, police,
humanitarian aid, and election
monitors
Language Problems
3rd world country troops
Recent conflicts can merit use of
limited force: Haiti and the DRC
No use of force permitted in Sudan
Spread of AIDS and trafficking
through UN solders
Cost Effective compared to US
What does this mean for
Darfur?
US declared Genocide on
September 9th, 2004
UN Commission denies
Genocide
Fear that if declared
genocide, action becomes
necessary and required
Funds are too limited to
act
Berndt and Muse: “Public
interests can only be
identified and articulated
only when individuals
listen to one another, only
when they modulate their
own voices so that the
voices of others can be
heard.”
What does this mean for
Darfur?
Reflection of Rwanda: Kofi Annan
“One of the reasons for our failure in Rwanda was that beforehand we did
not face the fact that genocide was a real possibility. And once it started,
for too long we could not bring ourselves to recognize it, or call it by its
name.
If we are serious about preventing or stopping genocide in future, we must
not be held back by legalistic arguments about whether a particular atrocity
meets the definition of genocide or not. By the time we are certain, it may
often be too late to act. We must recognize the signs of approaching or
possible genocide, so that we can act in time to avert it.
Mr. Chairman, such reports leave me with a deep sense of foreboding.
Whatever terms it uses to describe the situation, the international
community cannot stand idle.”
Berndt and Muse: “Talk that does not foresee action and look forward to
consequences is just a game or a pleasant pastime or an intellectual
exercise.”
US Action
In Sudan
…Sudan Peace Act
On October 21st, 2002, President George W. Bush signed
into law the Sudan Peace Act, which under Federal Law,
condemned the Sudanese Government for acts of Genocide.
Sudan Peace Act…
The pact authorized
U.S. Government to
spend $100 million in
the years 2003, 2004,
and 2005 to assist
Sudan
Every 6 months the
President receives
information regarding
the “good faith” of the
country
US and The Sudan…
If the Sudanese government interferes with
peace efforts, the US will seek a UN Security
Council resolution for an arms embargo
The Secretary of State must report every six
months on the steps taken to collect
information, including any findings or
determinations made by the State
Department
Current US Policy…
This act has not
created any changes
or influences as of
now towards the
efforts of ceasing the
genocide
It has provided aid
and support to those
who have survived
Sources
www.about.com
www.survivorsunited.com
www.wikipedia.com
www.itdg.org www.darfurgenocide.org
www.austin.indymedia.org www.democracy-project.com
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcthree/t www.lnsart.com
v/conflicts/sudan.shtml
www.commondreams.org
http://www.darfurgenocide.org/l
earn.php#Campaigns www.unitedhumanrights.org
http://hrw.org/english/docs/200 www.prisonersoverseas.com
4/07/19/darfur9096.htm
www.edcnews.se
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ima
ge:Darfur_map.png www.smh.com.au
www.msnbc.com www.whitehouse.gov
www.worldrevolution.org www.bj.org
www.dhushara.com
www.valkyriearms.com
www.herodote.net
www.members.fortunecity.com www.nafsa.org
sources cont…
http://www.savedarfur.org/action/educate
http://news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=1160&id=2128502005
http://www.americanprogressaction.org/site/pp.asp?c=klLWJcP7H&b=195053
http://washingtonsolidaritybeta.awardspace.com/
http://homepage.mac.com/dougmercado/PhotoAlbum23.html
http://discussions.ushmm.org/genocide_prevention/comment_list.php?ProjectTopic_
_TopicId=27
http://www.nrc.no/engindex.htm
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.thewe.cc/thewei/%26/images3/d
arfur/anger_at_pro_government_speech.jpe&imgrefurl=http://www.thewe.cc/contents
/more/archive/darfur_sudan.html&h=278&w=370&sz=63&tbnid=9KB4rq_5jRKt5M:&t
bnh=88&tbnw=118&hl=en&start=8&prev=/images%3Fq%3Ddarfur%2Bgovernment%
26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26rls%3DPCTA,PCTA:2006-
08,PCTA:en%26sa%3DN
Berndt and muse
hobbes
sources cont…
http://www3.iath.virginia.edu/holocaust/response.html
http://www2.dsu.nodak.edu/users/dmeier/Holocaust/responses.html
http://www.globalcontact.idv.tw/Download/PDF/Why_the_United_States_Let_the_Rw
andan_Tragedy_Happan.pdf
http://service.spiegel.de/cache/international/0,1518,338612,00.html
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/features/july-dec04/sudan_genocide.html
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/features/july-dec04/sudan_7-05.html
http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/2005-03-01-darfur-edit_x.htm
www.worldopinion.com
Hentoff, Nat. "The Un Ignores Genocide." Washington Times.The New York Sun
(2004).
Encyclopedia, Wikipedia The Free. Sudan Peace Act. March 2006 2002. Wikimedia
Foundation, Inc. Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudan_Peace_Act. 4/16/06
2006.
portland.indymedia.org/en/2002/09/21593.shtml www.churchill-society-
london.org.uk/1944SOND.html www.anglo-boer.co.za/concentrationpics.html
http://www.aeronautics.ru/archive/wwii/baltic_nazis/latvia/contact.htm
http://fp.seattleschools.org/SmartTools/genocide/rwanda/pictures.htm
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3797889292300937848&q=nazis&pl=true
Songs Angels and Airwaves- Valkyrie Missile 28 Days Later Soundtrack- The
Beginning and Frank’s Death
GENOCIDE
To find out more about what you can do to STOP
genocide, visit the following websites, or speak with
one of the members of the peer teaching group.
www.ourpledge.org
www.ushmm.org/stop-genocide