state crime Flashcards
GREEN AND WARD - defining state crime
illegal or deviant activities perpetrated by, or with the complicity of state agencies to further state policies
GREEN AND WARD - the scale of state crime
- states have enormous power
- G+W: 262 million people have been murdered by government during 20thC
- ex. the holocaust, the british and amercian military have inflicted torture
- the state makes the law, so it makes it difficult for united nations to intervene
the state as a trusted source of law
- the state role is to define what is criminal, uphold the law and prosecute offenders
- often states conceal crime and avoid defining its own actions as criminal
- many democracies have been guilty of state crimes
- but the principle of national sovereignty (rule its own borders) makes it difficult for united nations to intervene
MCLAUGHLIN - four times of state crime
- political crimes -corruption
- crimes by security and police forces - such as genocide
- economic crimes - violation of health and safety laws
- social and cultural crime - such as institutional racism
case studies of state crime: genocide - rwanda
genocide definition: acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or part of a national, ethnic community
- rwanda colonised in 1922 by belgium
- under belgium rule, tutsi minority were used to rule over hutu majority
- independence in 1960s, elections brought hutus to power
- 1990s economic/political crisis led to a civil war
- 800,000 tutsis were slaughtered by the state, backed by hutu military
KRAMER AND MICHALOWKI - two types of corporate crime
- state initiated crime - when states initiate, direct or approve corporate crimes
(e.g. challenger space shuttle 1986 - killed 7 astronauts) - state facilitated crime - occurs when states fail to regulate/control corporate behaviour
(e.g. deepwater horison oil rig disaster - 11 workers dead - due to cost cutting
who can declare war?
- under international law, in all cases other than self-defence, war can only be declared by the united nations security council
- many see US led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan - ‘wars on terror’ as illegal
- false claims were made about Iraq having weapons of mass destruction
KRAMER AND MICHALOWKI - war crimes committed by soldiers
- nine soliders convicted of sadistic, criminal abuse against prisoners in iraq
- crimes committed during wars and afterwards
WHYTE - colonisation
- USA colonisation of Iraq
- constitution illegally changed
- oil revenues seized to pay for reconstruction of the country
- 48 billion went to US firms
KRAMER - normalising war crimes
- terror bombings of civilians has become normalised
- most recent case is syria
HOW TO DEFINE STATE CRIME
CHAMBLISS - domestic law used to define state crime
- CHAMBLISS defines state crime as - ‘acts defined by law as criminal and committed by state officials in pursuit of their jobs’
- this ignores the fact that states have the power to create laws so can avoid criminalising their own actions
- ex. nazi germany passed laws to sterilize disabled people etc
HOW TO DEFINE STATE CRIME
MICHALOWSKI - social harms and zemiology (study of social harm) used to define state crime
- MICHALOWSKI argues state crime should include illegal acts, and legal acts when the consequences cause harm
- this would create a single standard that could be applied to all states - would have to take responsibility for all of their actions
- problem: harm is a vague concept - what level of harm must occur for it to be a crime?
HOW TO DEFINE STATE CRIME
labelling - how to define state crime
- labelling theory: whether an act is a crime depends on whether the audience of the act view it as a crime
- state crime is socially constructed, so what people regard as a crime can vary over time and between different cultures
- audiences definitions may also be manipulated by ruling class ideology
HOW TO DEFINE STATE CRIME
ROTHE AND MULLINS - international law used to define state crime
- ROTHE AND MULLINS argue international law should be used to define state crime
- laws that are created through treaties and agreements between states - geneva convention on war crimes
- these are globally agreed definitions of state crime
- international law is intentionally designed to deal with state crime - unlike domestic law
- problem: focus too much on war rather than political crimes and corruption
HOW TO DEFINE STATE CRIME
human rights used to define state crime
HERMAN AND JULIA SCHWENDINGER
COHEN
- natural rights: life, liberty, free speech
- civil rights: vote, privacy, education
- HERMAN AND JULIA SCHWENDINGER: state crime should be defined as the violation of basic human rights by the state, or its agents
- this should include imperialism, racism, sexism or economic exploitation - these are basic rights
- COHEN argues that while gross violations such as torture are clearly crimes, other acts such as economic exploitation are morally unacceptable - too broad
ADORNO - the authoritarian personality
- ADORNO identifies an authoritarian personality - willing to obey orders without question
- e.g. Nazi Germany - many people had this personality type due to the disciplinarian socialisation common at the time
what are crimes of obedience
(+GREEN AND WARD)
- MILGRAM study researched into this
- state crimes are crimes of obedience
- state crimes involve obeying higher authority
- research shows that people are willing to obey authority even if it involves harming others
- the torture usually occurs in a seperate place to allow the torturers to have ‘normal’ life - just a job
- their actions are part of a role they are socialised into
- GREEN AND WARD: torturers often have to be re-socialised
- propaganda about the ‘enemy’ is used
KELMAN AND HAMILTON - three features of crime and obedience
AUTHORISATION - when criminal acts are ordered the duty to obey replaces moral principles
ROUTINISATION - criminal acts are turned into a routine that is performed in a detached manner
DEHUMANISATION - the ‘enemy’ is portrayed as sub-human - principles of morality no longer apply
explaining state crime and modernity
BAUMAN
- BAUMAN: holocaust was not a return to pre-modern, barbaric society. instead it was part of modernity, murdering people was carried out in an efficient manner
- the holocaust was a modern, industrialised ‘mass production’ factory, the product was mass murder
BEAUMAN: four features of the modern society that made the holocaust possible
- division of labour - each person responsible for one task, no one has complete responsibility - like a production line
- bureaucratisation - normalised killing, repetitive, routine job, victims are units
- instrumental rationality - efficient methods aimed at achieving goals
- science and technology - railways, production of gas
what has been done to stop state crime
ALVAREZ + COHEN
- ALVAREZ: more pressure has been applied by international human rights organisations (amnesty international) on states who commit atrocities
- however, COHEN argues states have made more effort to deny or conceal human rights crimes
state crime and the culture of denial
STANLEY COHEN - the spiral of denial
- dictatorships often deny committing state crimes
- “it didn’t happen” / “its not what it looks like” / “all actions were justified to protect national security” - part of war on terror
neutralisation techniques
COHEN using MATZAs theory to show how the states justify the violation of human right
- denial of the victim - “they were terrorists”
- denial of the injury - “they started it”
- denial of responsibility - “i was just carrying out orders”
- condemning the condemners - “the whole world is picking on us”
- appeal to higher loyalty - state security etc
