Genocide in Rwanda

Genocide in Rwanda

Raphael Lemkin coined the term "genocide" in 1944. According to Lemkin, genocide signifies the destruction of a nation or of an ethnic group and implies the existence of a coordinated plan, aimed at total extermination, to be put into effect against individuals chosen as victims purely, simply, and exclusively because they are members of the target group. This coordinated plan is committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group. According to the United Nations' definition of genocide in their 1948 declaration of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, genocide is a crime under international law and classified as such:

1. Killing members of the group;

2. Causing severe 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.

Because a particular group is exterminated for existing on earth, genocide can also be classified as a crime against humanity. Men, women, and children are killed because of their specific bloodline. It does not matter if you are a frail elderly woman, newborn infant, or pregnant woman. All these people would be killed, and the pregnant woman would also be disemboweled to make sure that the fetus in her womb is dead as well. The idea is that anyone who carries that blood is eliminated. All in all, the specificity of genocide does not arise from the extent of the killings, nor their savagery or resulting degradation and infamy, but...

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... racism combined with power struggles, and violence can have deadly consequences. Another lesson to be learned is that powerful and elite nations may not always have the backs of third world countries in their time of trouble unless the powerful nations have something to gain from the third world countries. One very last and important lesson to be learned is that genocide is a serious matter and this should be evident to everyone in the world. It is a deadly crime against humanity and should never be taken lightly nor ignored. Unfortunately, and tragically, genocide was a recurring theme in the 20th century (occurred three times). However, now that we are in our 21st century, it is up to all the people of the world to preserve humanity and eliminate genocide altogether by ending all the racism, power struggles, and violence that currently surrounds us all.