(photo showing the excavation of mass graves in Srebrenica) What
is genocide? Genocide is the deliberate, systematic and violent
destruction of a group (an ethnic, racial, religious, national
or political group). This destruction can take many forms: - the
outright murder of (the majority of) the members of the group -
inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about
destruction - measures intended to prevent births - systematic
rape as a means of terror and a means to “dilute” the identity
of the group - forcibly transferring children of the group to
another group - destroying the (cultural) identity of the group
(forceful assimilation; imposition of a language, religion etc.)
“Systematic” is important here. Short-term outburst or pogrom
type actions will probably not amount to genocide. The “intent
to destroy” is also crucial when labeling actions or campaigns
as genocidal. The destruction, however, doesn’t have to be
physical (i.e. large-scale murder). As is obvious from the list
above, cultural des