Raphael Lemkin: The Original Anti-Genocide Activist (Part II)

by Michelle

Published October 04, 2008 @ 03:36AM PST

Towards International Recognition

After his first exposition of "genocide" in Axis Rule in Occupied Europe,  Raphael Lemkin sought to create a legal framework for the recognition of genocide as an international crime, which meant encoding prevention, protection, and punishment mechanisms into international law.  In article in 1945, Lemkin summarized the definition he first presented in 1944:

"The practices of genocide anywhere affect the vital interests of all civilized people. Its consequences can neither be isolated nor localized. Tolerating genocide is an admission of the principle that one national group has the right to attack another because of its supposed racial superiority. This principle invites an expansion of such practices beyond the borders of the offending state, and that means wars of aggression."

Having just witnessed the brutal atrocities of Hitler, Lemkin wrote that the signifiance of genocide is so great as to warrant a system of safeguards for the international protection of threatened groups:

"Genocide is too disastrous a phenomenon to be left to fragmentary regulation. There must be an adequate mechanism for international cooperation in the punishment of the offenders."

1946-7

In yet another article in 1946, Lemkin called on the United Nations to adopt a treaty to:

• Recognize the crime of genocide as an international offense;
• Incorporate the offense into the national criminal codes of signatory nations;
• Assume responsibility for prosecuting suspected perpetrators;
• Recognize the responsibility of various actors involved in inciting and committing genocide, including governments and political bodies; and to
• Delegate the power to the Security Council to impose sanctions on states supporting or inciting genocide.

Thanks in part to Lemkin's influence, on December 11, 1946, the UN General Assembly passed Resolution 96(I): The Crime of Genocide, which recognized genocide as the "denial of the right of existence of entire human groups." The resolution further states,

• Genocide "shocks the conscience of mankind" and is "contrary to the moral law and to the spirit and aims of the United Nations;"
• Affirms that genocide is a crime under international law, and punishment is "a matter of international concern;"
• Encourages member states to enact national legislation for the prevention and punishment of genocide; and
• Orders the drafting of a convention on the crime of genocide.

Ever prolific, Lemkin wrote about the resolution in the American Journal of International Law. noting that the resolution "changes fundamentally the international responsibilities of a government toward its citizens" and establishes the international community's right to intervene on behalf of "minorities slated for destruction."

(Lemkin also argues that Germany should not be exempt from the new international statute on genocide simply because the country is not a UN member state. Rather, "since Germany's Practices actually provided the basis for developing the concept of genocide," anti-genocide provisions in German domestic law should be required by the peace settlement process.)

1948 and Beyond

After advising the American team at the Nuremberg Trials, Lemkin continued his push for strong international legal mechanisms for the prevention and punishment of genocide. After the passage of the 1948 UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, Lemkin lobbied national governments to ratify the convention and pass national legislation to support and strengthen its implementation.

Raphael Lemkin left an indelible mark not only on international law, but on our very conception of human rights. His commitment to the cause is nothing short of remarkable, and serves as a prime example and inspiration to anti-genocide activists today.