Article 8: Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law.
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You probably have heard of contracts, and when you sign on to it, you must abide by the terms. When a country signs on to a United Nations Convention, is it a contract that they will abide by the terms of the agreement.
In response to the horrific events that unfolded in Germany during the Holocaust, the United Nations was formed in 1945 as an international peacekeeping body. One of the conventions formed by the United Nations was the 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. The word genocide was created to better describe the systematic killing of a group of people, the word itself was created by Rafael Lemkin who wanted to create one world that encompassed the systems of genocide and have it recognized as an international crime. The word genocide originated from the Greek word genos, meaning family origin, tribe or race, and the Latin-word cide – meaning to kill.
Here’s an excerpt from a rticle that further explains the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. The link to the full article is given below.
“The Genocide Convention has a very specific focus: it defines the crime as a number of specific acts, including killing with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group. It compels signatory states not only to punish, but also to prevent genocide. The Convention stipulates that not only genocide, but also conspiracy to commit genocide, direct and public incitement to genocide, and attempt to commit genocide are punishable as well. It also provides the UN Security Council with a basis to act in order to prevent and suppress genocide. Punishment requires a legal determination by a court of law as to whether genocide has in fact occurred.
As far as prevention is concerned, scholars have repeatedly pointed out that genocide can be predicted, and that ‘early warning’ signs exist, and for instance include hate speech combined with organizing and arming groups. However, many believe that it is impossible to prevent genocide: not because information on the signs of an impending genocide is missing, nor because the UN and others are not aware of them, but because the international community has been reluctant to acknowledge that genocide may occur. Doing so can complicate diplomatic relations, and, more importantly, raise the expectation that something forceful needs to be done by the international community, most notably the Security Council. One of the immense challenges in preventing genocide is precisely that the term itself is so powerful – it is vital that we use it early and firmly when appropriate, but also important that the term not be abused for political or other gain.”
On October 12, 1950, Sri-Lanka signed the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. This means they have agreed to the terms of this treaty. Below, we have attached the articles of the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Although Sri-Lanka has signed this treaty, they are in violation of it. Article 3 of the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide states that “the following acts shall be punishable: (a) Genocide; (b) Conspiracy to commit genocide; (c) Direct and public incitement to commit genocide; (d) Attempt to commit genocide; and (e) Complicity in genocide. Article 4 further states that those guilty of genocide should be punished “whether they are constitutionally responsible rulers, public officials or private individuals.” This means that even if it is those powerful ruthless leaders who have carried out a program of genocide, they should be prosecuted. Article 5 further goes on to say that “Persons charged with genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in Article 3 shall be tried by a competent tribunal of the State in the territory of which the act was committed, or by such international penal tribunal as may have jurisdiction with respect to those Contracting Parties which shall have accepted its jurisdiction.” While other tribunals, like the Permanent People’s Tribunal, (held on January 2010 in Dublin) found Sri-Lanka guilty of war crimes, the United Nations or Sri-Lanka has not formally charged any of those guilty of genocide of the charge of genocide.
If Sri-Lanka has agreed to these terms, and violations of these terms were carried out by the Sri-Lankan military and government, why hasn’t anyone prosecuted those guilty of war crimes, genocide and human rights violations under the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide?
Many people should urge the United Nations to get involved in prosecuting those guilty of the genocide of the Tamils. Do you not think if every individual capable of writing a letter, making a phone call actually wrote a letter or picked up the phone and urged the United Nations to prosecute those guilty, they would be under more pressure to do so? Wouldn’t the media also bring to light the human rights abuses and genocidal program carried out if we, the public demanded to see more of it?
Here are the Articles from the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
Article 1
The Contracting Parties confirm that genocide, whether committed in time of peace or in time of war, is a crime under international law which they undertake to prevent and to punish.
Article 2
In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:
- (a) Killing members of the group;
- (b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;
- (c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
- (d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;
- (e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.
Article 3
The following acts shall be punishable:
- (a) Genocide;
- (b) Conspiracy to commit genocide;
- (c) Direct and public incitement to commit genocide;
- (d) Attempt to commit genocide;
- (e) Complicity in genocide.
Article 4
Persons committing genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in Article 3 shall be punished, whether they are constitutionally responsible rulers, public officials or private individuals.
Article 5
The Contracting Parties undertake to enact, in accordance with their respective Constitutions, the necessary legislation to give effect to the provisions of the present Convention and, in particular, to provide effective penalties for persons guilty of genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in Article 3.
Article 6
Persons charged with genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in Article 3 shall be tried by a competent tribunal of the State in the territory of which the act was committed, or by such international penal tribunal as may have jurisdiction with respect to those Contracting Parties which shall have accepted its jurisdiction.
Article 7
Genocide and the other acts enumerated in Article 3 shall not be considered as political crimes for the purpose of extradition.
The Contracting Parties pledge themselves in such cases to grant extradition in accordance with their laws and treaties in force.
Article 8
Any Contracting Party may call upon the competent organs of the United Nations to take such action under the Charter of the United Nations as they consider appropriate for the prevention and suppression of acts of genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in Article 3.
Article 9
Disputes between the Contracting Parties relating to the interpretation, application or fulfilment of the present Convention, including those relating to the responsibility of a State for genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in Article 3, shall be submitted to the International Court of Justice at the request of any of the parties to the dispute.
Article 10
The present Convention, of which the Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish texts are equally authentic, shall bear the date of 9 December 1948.
Article 11
The present Convention shall be open until 31 December 1949 for signature on behalf of any Member of the United Nations and of any non-member State to which an invitation to sign has been addressed by the General Assembly.
The present Convention shall be ratified, and the instruments of ratification shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
After 1 January 1950, the present Convention may be acceded to on behalf of any Member of the United Nations and of any non-member State which has received an invitation as aforesaid.
Instruments of accession shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Article 12
Any Contracting Party may at any time, by notification addressed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, extend the application of the present Convention to all or any of the territories for the conduct of whose foreign relations that Contracting Party is responsible.
Article 13
On the day when the first twenty instruments of ratification or accession have been deposited, the Secretary-General shall draw up a proces-verbal and transmit a copy of it to each Member of the United Nations and to each of the non-member States contemplated in Article 11.
The present Convention shall come into force on the ninetieth day following the date of deposit of the twentieth instrument of ratification or accession.
Any ratification or accession effected subsequent to the latter date shall become effective on the ninetieth day following the deposit of the instrument of ratification or accession.
Article 14
The present Convention shall remain in effect for a period of ten years as from the date of its coming into force.
It shall thereafter remain in force for successive periods of five years for such Contracting Parties as have not denounced it at least six months before the expiration of the current period.
Denunciation shall be effected by a written notification addressed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Article 15
If, as a result of denunciations, the number of Parties to the present Convention should become less than sixteen, the Convention shall cease to be in force as from the date on which the last of these denunciations shall become effective.
Article 16
A request for the revision of the present Convention may be made at any time by any Contracting Party by means of a notification in writing addressed to the Secretary-General.
The General Assembly shall decide upon the steps, if any, to be taken in respect of such request.
Article 17
The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall notify all Members of the United Nations and the non-member States contemplated in Article 11 of the following:
- (a) Signatures, ratifications and accessions received in accordance with Article 11;
- (b) Notifications received in accordance with Article 12;
- (c) The date upon which the present Convention comes into force in accordance with Article 13;
- (d) Denunciations received in accordance with Article 14;
- (e) The abrogation of the Convention in accordance with Article 15;
- (f) Notifications received in accordance with Article 16.
Article 18
The original of the present Convention shall be deposited in the archives of the United Nations.
A certified copy of the Convention shall be transmitted to all Members of the United Nations and to the non-member States contemplated in Article 11.
Article 19
The present Convention shall be registered by the Secretary-General of the United Nations on the date of its coming into force.
Credits:
http://untreaty.un.org/cod/avl/ha/cppcg/cppcg.html
http://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=IND&mtdsg_no=IV-1&chapter=4&lang=en
http://www.un.org/preventgenocide/adviser/state2.shtml
http://www.hrweb.org/legal/genocide.html
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