Dispensa- 9 -Genocides

Question 1

Mass killings and genocide definition

Answer 1

mass killing

• intentional massacres of large number of civilians (25m deaths since WW2)
• happens almost always after a conflict

genocide
-cases in which one group is totally exterminated

Question 2

Darfur case

who

Answer 2

• Identified groups:
  • Main perpetrators: government-backed “Arab” militias
  • Main civilian victims: black “Africans”

Question 3

Darfur

Causes for genocide

Answer 3

• Elections and democratization feared by government
• Ethnic division
• Reliance on natural resources
• International community hesitant to rapidly and forcefully intervene

Question 4

The ‘logic’ behind mass killing

Answer 4

Mass killing enables the permanent reduction of future threats

• If enfranchisement, dominant groups have incentives to decimate minorities, for higher surplus
• If disenfranchisement, minorities want larger surplus, leading to rebellion

Question 5

Third Party intervention discussion

Answer 5

In 1992, in the absence of a gvt

In 2011, against a gvt

Question 6

Effects of interventions (Hultman 2010)

Answer 6

• UN interventions mandated to protect civilians reduce civilian deaths
• UN peace operations increase rebel targeting of civilians

Question 7

relationship between mass killing and democracy

Answer 7

Non-linear: the process of democratisation increases the mass killings risk

Question 8

Reducing mass killing factors

Answer 8

• Large levels of ethnic fractionalization or very homogeneous society
• Trade openness reduces mass killings risks

Question 9

Increasing mass killing factors

Answer 9

• Ethnic polarization
• Inequality (especially human capital inequality)
• Natural resource abundant countries

Question 10

Influence of international institutions

Answer 10

The UN recognised the importance of limiting the internal ability of a powerful leader to kill in 2011
Debate if international courts could be asked only by sovereign states, or also by citizens