Genocide Watch

Genocide Watch exists to predict, prevent, stop, and punish genocide and other forms of mass murder. We seek to raise awareness and influence public policy concerning potential and actual genocide. Our purpose is to build an international movement to prevent and stop genocide.

• Education

• Prediction of genocide
• Prevention
• Intervention
• Justice

8 Stages of Genocide

Classification

"us" and "them"

• Rwanda: Hutus and Tutsis

Symbolization

•Classifications are symbolized, groups are given names and other symbols

Prevention measures: Hate symbols must be made illegal

Dehumanization

•One group denies the humanity of the other group.

•Use of hate propaganda in printed media or on radios

Rwanda

Tutsis were reffered to as "cockroaches"

Radio Télévision Libres des Milles Collines

•Prevention measures : condemn the use of hate speech and make it culturally unacceptable

Organization

• Every genocide is organized. Usually by the state, using trained and armed militias

Rwanda witnessed the Organization of extremist militias such as the Interahamwe

•Prevention measures:

-Outlawing membership militias

- leaders should be denied visas for foreign travel.

- impose arms embargoes

-create commissions to investigate violations

Polarization

• The groups are driven apart through propaganda and laws

• Moderated members of the perpetrators' own group are arrested and killed

Prevention: seize assets of extremists and diplomatic sanctions such as travel restrictions

Translation

-What is happening?

- They have killed Habyarimana.

- We demand our valorous Hutu brothers not to allow this crime to go unpunished. Get up, brothers. Get up and go to work. Sharpen your tools, lift your truncheons. We have to eradicate this breed of cockroaches. Search for them in all holes.

Preparation

•Victims are identified and singled out

•Death lists are drawn up

•Symbols are forced upon the members of the victim group

•Segregation

•Prevention: armed international intervention or assistance to the victim group

Extermination

•Actual massacres take place

•Often cooperation between the nation's armed forces and militias

•Prevention: rapid and overwhelming armed international intervention

Denial

•Perpetrators deny an actual genocide took place or refuse to ensure accountability

•Solution: prosecution and punishment

The Darfur region lies in the western part of the Sudan, it is about the size of France

The UN estimates that between 200,000-300,000 people have died in Darfur since the start of the conflict in 2003.

Two rebel groups known as the Sudan Liberation Army Movement (SLA/M) and the Justice Equality Movement (JEM) launched an attacked on the Al-Fashir airport in Darfur as well government equipment.

The Arab militias known as the Janjaweed soon began enacting policies of ethnic cleansing--including forced displacement, starvation, murder, torture and rape--against the civilian population of Darfur

The population of Darfur was about six million, in 2002 before the start of the conflict

The violence has forced hundreds of thousands of people - mostly farmers and villagers from non-Arab groups - to flee their homes.

Genocide Watch

Mission Statement:

Objectives:

http://genocidewatch.org/

Prevention measures: develop universal institutions that transcend the divisions

Social groups are classified as "us" and "them"

Despite the government’s denial in its involvement in Darfur, in March 2009, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Sudan’s President, which would make him the first sitting head of state to be indicted.

Prevention Measures: prohibiting such symbols by law