Although exterminating a multiracial society is inhumane, many countries feel there are benefits to having a “pure society.” These extremist countries tend to perform socially and ethically unacceptable acts in order to enforce their personal opinions and beliefs on others. These “acts” are present in today’s society such as genocide and ethnic cleansing.
For centuries there has been conflict between countries and not until after WWII was there anything official to neutralize the conflict: The United Nations (UN). Born into existence officially on October 24, 1945, when the UN Charter had been ratified by a majority of the original 51 Member States. The purpose of the UN is to bring all the nations of the world to neutral peace and development, based on the principles of justice, human dignity and the well-being of all people. It gives the nations of the world the opportunity to balance global interdependence and national interests when addressing international problems. The UN currently holds 192 Members from each country, large or small, rich or poor. The Members meet in the General Assembly. The Assembly takes one vote from every country when making ubiquitous decisions, however, none of the decisions taken by the Assembly are binding. Nevertheless, the Assembly’s decisions become resolutions that carry the weight of world governmental opinion. The Aims of the United Nations are very simple; keep peace, develop friendly relations, work together to better lives, and be a centre for helping nations achieve these aims. There are six principles the UN holds; All Member States have sovereign equality and must obey the Charter, countries must try to settle differences with peaceful means and avoid using force in anway, the UN may n...
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Nossiter, Adam. "Warnings of Ethnic Cleansing in Central African Republic." The New York Times. The New York Times, 12 Feb. 2014. Web. 07 Apr. 2014.
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every nation in the world belongs to the United Nations. The United Nations has four purposes: to maintain international peace and security; to develop friendly relations among nations; to cooperate in solving international problems and in promoting respect for human rights; and to be a center for harmonizing the actions of nations.The United Nations is not a world government though,and it does not make laws.
The word genocide was derived from the Greek root genos (people) and the Latin root cide (killing), and did not exist in the English language until 1944, which was the end of World War II (Power). According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, genocide is “the deliberate and systematic destruction of a racial, political, or cultural group.” Such violence occurred during the Holocaust and during the separation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The problems of ethnic cleansing and repression have become so prevalent in the last century that they have contributed to two world wars, over fourteen million deaths, and a new word. United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, said, “Far from being consigned to history, genocide and its ilk remain a serious threat. Not just vigilance but a willingness to act are as important today as ever.”
The system the UN currently has offers some perspective on the idea of conducting and participating in war. But...
Since Burundi’s independence in 1962, there have been two instances of genocide: the 1972 mass killings of Hutus by the Tutsi-dominated government, and the 1993 mass killings of the Tutsis by the Hutu populace. Both of these events in Burundi received different levels of attention by the international community and the western media due to a lack of foreign governmental interest, political distraction, and an unwillingness to acknowledge the severity of these atrocities in Burundi. Interestingly, events of genocide occurring at times without these distractions received more foreign attention than those ignored due to these factors. Because of this, much of the western world is unaware of the Burundian genocide and events similar to it.
Throughout history mass murder has not been a problem to the same level and in the same sense as it is today. A related occurrence that is seen in history, which can be studied for its similar preparation and organization, is genocide. Genocide, an international crime, is a large-scale form of mass murder, in which many people are killed in a string of independent events because of prejudices or war (Reisman, 2008). Killing a large group of people takes a high level of organization. The logistics of how to do it, where to do it, where to dispose of the bodies, among other things must be examined before killing begins (Reisman, 2008). The only similarity to the 21st century version of mass murder is the predatory violence involving extensive planning and little to no emotion involved in the killing (Meloy et al., 2004). However aside from that it is difficult to compare the two events because genocide has many killers and can take place over extended periods of time. For example, during the Holocaust Nazi Germany systematically exterminated millions of Jew over a period of three years (Reisman, 2008). This trend is relevant due to the death of more than three p...
A total of 11 million people died during the Holocaust. The Holocaust was started by the Nazi’s in the 1930’s. It was were about six million Jews were killed. Misinformed individuals theorize that the Holocaust is not a form of genocide but they are misguided. The Holocaust should be considered an example of genocide based on the UN’s definition, the stages of genocide and the specific evidence provided in the memoir Night.
After Elie Wiesel was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986, he gave an acceptance speech reflecting upon the true meaning of his novel and reflecting upon the crimes in our history. He revealed how “silence encourages the tormentor” while “indifference [is] the most insidious danger of all.” I find a lot of truth in these words and I agree with his assertion. Individuals tend to get overwhelmed by desperation, a sense of helplessness and fear in the face of acts, such as oppression and genocide. During these times, it is the responsibility of the world community to step in. This is proved to be true by the novel Night, the movie The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, and by the article called “A Secret Life.”
Africa has been an interesting location of conflicts. From the conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea to the revolutionary conflict in Libya and Egypt, one of the greatest conflicts is the Rwandan Genocide. The Rwandan Genocide included two tribes in Rwanda: Tutsis and Hutus. Upon revenge, the Hutus massacred many Tutsis and other Hutus that supported the Tutsis. This gruesome war lasted for a 100 days. Up to this date, there have been many devastating effects on Rwanda and the global community. In addition, many people have not had many acknowledgements for the genocide but from this genocide many lessons have been learned around the world.
"Rwanda Genocide." Global Issues in Context Online Collection. Detroit: Gale, 2010. Global Issues In Context. Web. 12 Apr. 2010.
Springer, Jane. Genocide: A Groundwork Guide. Toronto, Ontario: Groundwood Books / House of Anansi Press, 2006. (Accessed March 7, 2014).
Various schools of thought exist as to why genocide continues at this deplorable rate and what must be done in order to uphold our promise. There are those who believe it is inaction by the international community which allows for massacres and tragedies to occur - equating apathy or neutrality with complicity to evil. Although other nations may play a part in the solution to genocide, the absolute reliance on others is part of the problem. No one nation or group of nations can be given such a respo...
Wikipedia contributors. "Genocides in history." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 20 Apr. 2014. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.
“If society exists through relationships with one another, then it is guided by the rules of conduct that apply to those relationships” (Pearson 18). The authors explains about the expectations of college students in a classroom. There were three students who would not stop talking during the lecture. The rest of the students encouraged them to stop talking. The professor did not have to tell the students to quiet down. Instead, the other students told them for the professor. Racism can also be like this situation. For an example, Adolf Hitler is the professor, the quiet students is Germany, and the talkative students is the Jewish community. Hitler does not need to kill the Jewish community, instead, his country does the killing for him. To solve racism with social norms, a larger group who is not racist can tell and teach a smaller group how not to be. The smaller group will notice the larger group is not racist and may
Fifty-one countries established the United Nations also known as the UN on October 24, 1945 with the intentions of preserving peace through international cooperation and collective security. Over the years the UN has grown in numbers to include 185 countries, thus making the organization and its family of agencies the largest in an effort to promote world stability. Since 1954 the UN and its organizations have received the Nobel Peace Prize on 5 separate occasions. The first in 1954 awarded to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, for its assistance to refugees, and finally in 1988 to the United Nations Peace-keeping Forces, for its peace-keeping operations. As you can see, the United Nations efforts have not gone without notice.