HREQ 2010 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Raphael Lemkin

• School: York University
• Department: Human Rights and Equity Studies
• Course: HREQ 2010
• Professor: Paul Brienza

Document Summary

In international law, there was an overriding premise, which was state sovereignty: genocide was the concern of independent states, of what occurred within their own borders. Thus, no international law was in place to condemn nations for committing genocidal acts. The state has been regarded the definer and defender of criminality: states can also become criminal actors. ^-this requires a significant change in the way we see government and states. Introduces the idea as it may have never existed before. In 1944, raphael lemkin devised the term genocide. He observes what is going on around him, the reality of the situation of europe at that time, where in the case of nazi germany and soviet russia, genocide becomes a state policy. It becomes something states feel that they can do, which brings out a reaction that builds up over time. Formation of the un: different perspective of what states do.