STATE CRIME

Question 1

DEFINITIONS of STATE CRIME:

DOMESTIC LAW
ZEMIOLOGY
INTERNATIONAL LAW
HUMAN RIGHTS

Answer 1

GREEN and WARD:
‘ILLEGAL or DEVIANT activities perpetrated by state agencies’

DOMESTIC LAW:
state crime are ‘acts defined by law as criminal and
committed by state officials in pursuit of their jobs as
representatives of
the state.’

ZEMIOLOGY:
state crimes are illegal and legally permissible acts that are similar to illegal acts in the harm they cause

HILLYARD: argues we should REPLACE the study of crime with ZEMIOLOGY, whether or not they are against the law eg STATE FACILITATED POVERTY

INTERNATIONAL LAW:
state crime is ANY ACTION BY THE STATE that VIOLATES INTERNATIONAL LAW (law created by treaties)

HUMAN RIGHTS:
state crime should be defined as a VIOLATION of people’s BASIC HUMAN RIGHT’S by the STATE

Question 2

TYPES of STATE CRIME:
McLAUGHLIN

Answer 2

POLITICAL CRIMES:
eg CORRUPTION and CENSORSHIP

CRIMES BY SECURITY and POLICE FORCES:
GENOCIDE in GAZA

ECONOMIC CRIMES:
violations of H+S laws
eg CHERNOBYL DISASTER

SOCIAL and CULTURAL CRIMES:

INSTITUTIONAL RACISM
- police targeting ethnic minority groups

DESTRUCTION of NATIVE CULTURES eg PALESTINIANS being displaced from their land by ZIONISTS: NAKBA and USA destruction of NATIVE AMERICAN LAND

Question 3

STATE CRIME is the MOST SERIOUS form of crime for TWO reasons:

Answer 3

SCALE:
States are LARGE and POWERFUL entities, that
can cause HARM on a LARGE SCALE.

STATE as a SOURCE OF LAW:
States have the power to CONCEAL their crimes and make them HARDER to
DETECT, and CHANGE the law to BENEFIT their deviance. The concept of NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY means that it is DIFFICULT for UNITED NATIONS to intervene

CULTURE OF DENIAL:

the impact of INTERANTIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS MOVEMENTS have INCREASED PRESSURE on states, that now have to PUT GREATER EFFORT in CONCEALING their HUMAN RIGHTS CRIMES. COHEN suggest STATES follow a THREE STAGE ‘SPIRAL OF DENIAL’: ‘it didn’t happen’ eg states claim there wasn’t a massacre, when shown evidence states claim ‘if it (the massacre) did happen, it was something else (self- defence) and ‘ even if is what you say it is, it’s justified’

NEUTRALISATION THEORY:

STATES use the SAME TECHNIQUES (delinquents use to justify their behaviour) to JUSTIFY human rights violations: DENIAL OF VICTIM, DENIAL OF INJURY, DENIAL OF RESPONSIBILITY, CONDEMNING THE CONDEMNERS and APPEALING TO HIGHER LOYALTY.
eg ZIONISTS uses this to excuse the GENOCIDE in PALESTINE

Question 4

EXPLAINING STATE CRIME:

Answer 4

AUTHORITARIAN PERSONALITY:

‘willingness to OBEY to ORDERS of SUPERIORS without question’.
eg during WW2, many GERMANS had AUTHORITARIAN PERSONALITIES due to the PUNITIVE SOCIALISATION PATTERNS.

CRIMES OF OBEDIENCE:
state crimes are crimes of conformity as they REQUIRE obedience to a HIGHER AUTHORITY- THE STATE. eg ISRAELI OCCUPATION FORCES
From a study from the MY LAI MASSCRE in VIETNAM, THREE FEATURES that produce CRIMES of OBEDIENCE were found:
1. AUTHORISATION
acts are APPROVED by those in POWER, MORAL PRINCIPLES are REPLACED by DUTY TO OBEY
2. ROUTINISATION:
turn the CRIME into a ROUTINE so it can be performed in a
detached manner.
3. DEHUMANISATION: victims are portrayed as SUB-HUMAN

MODERNITY:
BAUMAN suggests it is certain features of modern society that made the state crimes possible:
1. DIVISION OF LABOUR: Each person is responsible for one task so no one is full responsible.
2. BUREAUCRATISATION: Normalisation of the act by making it repetitive and the routine DEHUMANISATION of victim.
3. INSTRUMENTAL RATIONALITY:
Rational and efficient methods to achieve a goal regardless of the goal itself.
4. SCIENCE + TECHNOLOGY: scientific and technological knowledge to justify the means
and the motive