Dictionary of Genocide - D Ank Unlimited

Among the many genocide scholars who have contributed essays to the series over
the years are: Howard Adelman, Alex Alvarez, Paul R. Bartrop, Israel W. Charny, Vahakn
Dadrian, James Dunn, Barbara Harff, Herbert Hirsch, Richard Hovannisian, Curt Jonassohn,
Leo Kuper, James Mace, Eric Markusen, Martin Mennecke, Rubina Peroomian,
Rudolph J. Rummel, William Schabas, Roger Smith, Greg Stanton, and Samuel Totten.
Genocide and Politicide Project. Based at the University of Maryland-College Park,
this project is directed by political scientists Barbara Harff (b. 1942), professor emerita at
the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis. Its foundation is a data base that includes information
on a broad range of genocide and politicides perpetrated between 1955 and 2002—
some fifty in all, which have engulfed the lives of at least 12 million and as many as
22 million noncombatants, more than all of the victims of internal and international wars
since 1945. The Web site of the Genocide and Politicide Project notes that the following
questions cum guidelines were used to help distinguish cases of genocide and politicide
from other kinds of killings that generally occur during civil conflicts: “(1) Is there complicity
by the state (or, in the case of civil war, either of the contending authorities) in
actions undertaken that endanger human life?; (2) Is there evidence, even if circumstantial,
of intent on the part of authorities to isolate or single out group members for mistreatment?;
(3) Are victims members of an identifiable group?; (4) Are there policies and
practices that cause prolonged mass suffering; and (5) Do the actions committed pose a
threat to the survival of the group?”
Genocide by Attrition. A phrase that refers to the deliberate denial of adequate water,
foodstuffs, and medical attention to a specific group of people by a perpetrator for the express
purpose of contributing to the targeted group’s demise. This phrase/concept was employed
by various genocide scholars to explain a large part of the deaths of black Africans in Darfur,
Sudan, who have been attacked, raped, killed, and run off their land by Government of
Sudan (GOS) troops and the Janjaweed (Arab militia) between 2003 and today (late 2007).
The deaths attributed to genocide by attrition are those that resulted from starvation, dehydration,
lack of medical care, and similar debilitating, and often deadly conditions. In carrying
out death and destruction, the GOS and Janjaweed stole the foodstuffs of the black
Africans, poisoned their wells by tossing dead animal carcasses and dead human bodies into
the wells, and chased the survivors into the wilds of the desolate mountains and deserts of
Darfur. The GOS and Janjaweed have also purposely prevented foodstuffs, medicine and
other supplies crucial to survival from entering many internally displaced camps where the
black Africans have sought sanctuary, thus increasing the death toll.
Genocide, Causes of. As with all social sciences, establishing causality is not a scientific
endeavor. Only with hindsight is some kind of connection visible between an event
and what transpired beforehand. The best one can do is to determine antecedents and circumstances
that point toward the event under consideration. This is no less true when
analyzing the origins of a particular genocide. Whether one can ultimately arrive at a
common denominator of causes true for all genocides remains dubious. Most frequently
(though not always), genocides take place in times of war. Of course, there has to be a prevailing
ideology (or at least a mood or attitude) that demonizes a target group for elimination.
Times of extreme economic stress can contribute to the outbreak of mass violence.
Genocidal violence is more likely to erupt where there is an absence of democracy at
home and international disinterest. Another condition that may encourage genocidal
thought and action is a radical imbalance of power between the génocidaires and the
GENOCIDE, CAUSES OF
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