Genocide Is a Traumatic Part

Genocide is a traumatic part of world history. The term genocide was coined in the aftermath of World War II. When the world learned that more than six million Jewish people had been murdered by the German military because of their beliefs, the universal reaction was disgust and disbelief. Since this series of deaths, the world has been made aware of other occasions of mass murder within nations because of ethnic or political reasons. These situations can rarely be solved within the nation where the murders occur. However, historically it has been difficult to get international aid because of red tape and bureaucratic nonsense. Millions die before any aid is bestowed.

In the documentary Ghost of Rwanda, the historical incident of when the Hutus attacked the Tutsi, the United Nation was asked for help during the genocide, but no nation except for Belgium was willing to provide aid to the slaughtered peoples. In Rwanda, some 800,000 individual men, women, and children were mutilated and murdered by the religious extremists of the Hutu people. Although the murders were well-documented and images of the dead bodies were available across the globe, no one provided help to the people in need. These deaths began a series of inquiries into when "ethnic cleansing" transforms into "genocide." In 1996, the United States President Bill Clinton, stated that the U.S. would only become involved in a country where they had an interest. In Rwanda, the United States had no interest and so it was not for the U.S. To become involved in the conflict there.

Some people believe that genocide is an issue which should be exclusively dealt with in the country where the deaths are occurring. Only when the genocide spills out into other countries, like they did during the Second World War, should the United Nations or other countries become involved. Only when it is literally an international problem, should the murders become of international concern. Other people however feel that whenever murder occurs on a mass scale, someone should become involved to stop further acts of evil. If no one is able to intervene on behalf of the victimized population, there is nothing to prevent the aggravators from continuing their atrocities.

Much debate over this issue has come from the definition of "genocide." Officially, the United Nations has stated that in order for a series of mass murders to be classified as genocidal, more than one million people have to have died, most often because of their ethnicity or political beliefs. If this number has not been reached, then the issue will be considered "ethnic cleansing," wherein a group is targeted by a majority because of their ethnicity. Ethnic cleansing is not aided by the United Nations because it is believed that the agenda of murder based on ethnicity will subside when other, more pressing political or international issues come about. In other words, until the amount of the dead is considered high enough to have an internal effect, there will be little or no aid to the endangered population.

Summaries

"Eyewitness Testimony"

Raphael Lempkin was a man who escaped Nazism in 1939 and came to the U.S. After the war, he worked with the League of Nations to ensure that crimes against a group of people would be punished. He is credited with coining the term "genocide." He was not just concerned with the murderous actions of the Nazis, but also of the Ukranians and Russians, Poles and Slavs, and all other groups who were victimized because of how they differed from the attacking group.

"Ghost of Rwanda."

In Rwanda, 800,000 people were killed by racial extremists. The Tutsis were massacred by the Hutu because of racial differences. The Tutsis had been a rebellious group which demanded equal land from Hutu-controlled territory. The UN determined that the Hutu would have to share land with the Tutsis. Not just Tutsis, but all "moderate Hutus" were targeted for extermination. The only part of the international community willing to aid Rwanda was the small country of Belgium, many of whom were murdered as well. The United States was not quick to act because of a prior failure in their involvement with Somalia. No group came to give aid, until the Red Cross stepped in. They were the group who got international attention to the issue and more Red Cross aid was allowed through the country. One man in particular, Captain Mbaye Diagne saved a thousand lives even while the UN was stalling.