Genocide and Political Groups

Francoist repression in Spain and the crime of genocide

“…Nevertheless, it is necessary to stress the fact that Lemkin (1944: 79-95) himself, who was the first person to introduce the term 'genocide' and who later participated in the development of the 1948 Convention, also excluded political groups from the victims of genocidal practices. Subsequently, this whole situation regarding the exclusion of political groups from the list of victims protected by the 1948 Convention has contributed to scholars developing the concept of politicide or political genocide to refer essentially to the physical destruction of individuals based on their membership of a particular political party or movement (Feierstein, 2014: 31-32;Harff and Gurr, 1988;Nersessian, 2010;Van Schaack, 1997). Although political groups were not covered by the due international protection for a long time, protection of their interests was finally recognized by Art.…”

“…According to Article II of this convention, genocide mainly means the implementation of mass killings with the aim of total or partial annihilation of any national, ethnic, racial or religious group. Thus, the Convention contains a specific list of groups that may be the object of genocidal policies, which has generated debate and concern for some members of the scientific community (Fournet, 2007: 51-55;Miguez Macho, 2017: 22-23;Nersessian, 2010;Schabas, 2009). Criminologists have criticized the concept of genocide for its exclusionary nature, as it focuses only on protecting the rights of national, ethnic, racial or religious groups, while other collectives, including political groups, 4 remain outside of the scope of the Convention (Brannigan, 2013: 51;Feierstein, 2014Feierstein, : 16, 2015Rafter, 2016: 53).…”

Conflict in Ukraine – Legal Battlefield. Editorial

“…The initiative of the Group of Friends of Accountability following the Aggression against Ukraine, co-founded by Albania, Colombia, Denmark, the Marshall Islands, the Netherlands, and Ukraine. 15 Annex to the International Law Commission (ILC), Dra conclusions on identi cation and legal consequences of peremptory norms of general international law (jus cogens), 2022.…”