Genocide Convention - wikipedia Genocide Convention Genocide Convention Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide Signed 9 December 1948 Location Paris Effective 12 January 1951 Signatories 39 Parties 143 ( Complete List ) Depositary Secretary - General of the United Nations The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 9 December 1948 as General Assembly Resolution 260. The Convention entered into force on 12 January 1951. It defines genocide in legal terms, and is the culmination of years of campaigning by lawyer Raphael Lemkin. All participating countries are advised to prevent and punish actions of genocide in war and in peacetime. The number of states that have ratified the convention is currently 147. Contents 1 Definition of genocide 2 Parties 2.1 Reservations 2.1. 1 Immunity from prosecutions 2.1. 2 Application to Non-Self - Governing Territories 3 Breaches 3.1 Rwanda 3.2 Serbia 4 Other accusations 4.1 United States 5 See also 6 References 7 Further reading Definition of genocide Article 2 of the Convention defines genocide as... any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such : ( a ) Killing members of the group ; ( b ) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group ; ( c ) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part ; ( d ) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group ; ( e ) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group. -- Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, Article 2 Article 3 defines the crimes that can be punished under the convention : ( a ) Genocide ; ( b ) Conspiracy to commit genocide ; ( c ) Direct and public incitement to commit genocide ; ( d ) Attempt to commit genocide ; ( e ) Complicity in genocide. -- Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, Article 3 The convention was passed to outlaw actions similar to the Holocaust by Nazi Germany during World War II. The first draft of the Convention included political killings, but the USSR along with some other nations would not accept that actions against groups identified as holding similar political opinions or social status would constitute genocide, so these stipulations were subsequently removed in a political and diplomatic compromise. Parties Main article : List of parties to the Genocide Convention Participation in the Genocide Convention Signed and ratified Acceded or succeeded Provisos granting immunity from prosecution for genocide without its consent were made by Bahrain, Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, the United States, Vietnam, Yemen, and Yugoslavia. Prior to the United States Senate 's ratification of the convention, Senator William Proxmire spoke in favor of the treaty to the Senate every day it was in session between 1967 and 1986. Reservations Immunity from prosecutions Persons charged with genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in article III shall be tried by a competent tribunal of the State in the territory of which the act was committed, or by such international penal tribunal as may have jurisdiction with respect to those Contracting Parties which shall have accepted its jurisdiction. -- Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, Article 6 Any Contracting Party may call upon the competent organs of the United Nations to take such action under the Charter of the United Nations as they consider appropriate for the prevention and suppression of acts of genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in article III. -- Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, Article 8 Disputes between the Contracting Parties relating to the interpretation, application or fulfilment of the present Convention, including those relating to the responsibility of a State for genocide or for any of the other acts enumerated in article III, shall be submitted to the International Court of Justice at the request of any of the parties to the dispute. -- Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, Article 9 Bahrain Bangladesh China India Malaysia ( reservation opposed by Netherlands, United Kingdom ) Morocco Myanmar Philippines ( reservation opposed by Norway ) Rwanda ( reservation opposed by United Kingdom ) Singapore ( reservation opposed by Netherlands, United Kingdom ) United Arab Emirates United States of America ( reservation opposed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom ) Venezuela Vietnam ( reservation opposed by United Kingdom ) Yemen ( reservation opposed by United Kingdom ) Yugoslavia ( Montenegro, Serbia,... ) Application to Non-Self - Governing Territories Any Contracting Party may at any time, by notification addressed to the Secretary - General of the United Nations, extend the application of the present Convention to all or any of the territories for the conduct of whose foreign relations that Contracting Party is responsible -- Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, Article 12 Several countries opposed this article, considering that the convention should apply to Non-Self - Governing Territories : Albania Belarus Bulgaria Hungary Mongolia Myanmar Poland Romania Russian Federation Ukraine The opposition of those countries were in turn opposed by : Australia Belgium Brazil Ecuador China Netherlands Sri Lanka United Kingdom Breaches Rwanda The first time that the 1948 law was enforced occurred on 2 September 1998 when the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda found Jean - Paul Akayesu, the former mayor of a small town in Rwanda, guilty of nine counts of genocide. The lead prosecutor in this case was Pierre - Richard Prosper. Two days later, Jean Kambanda became the first head of government to be convicted of genocide. Serbia The first state to be found in breach of the Genocide convention was Serbia. In the Bosnia and Herzegovina v. Serbia and Montenegro case the International Court of Justice presented its judgment on 26 February 2007. It cleared Serbia of direct involvement in genocide during the Bosnian war, but ruled that Belgrade did breach international law by failing to prevent the 1995 Srebrenica genocide, and for failing to try or transfer the persons accused of genocide to the ICTY, in order to comply with its obligations under Articles I and VI of the Genocide Convention, in particular in respect of General Ratko Mladić. Other accusations United States One of the first accusations of genocide submitted to the UN after the Convention entered into force concerned treatment of Black Americans. The Civil Rights Congress drafted a 237 - page petition arguing that even after 1945, the United States had been responsible for hundreds of wrongful deaths, both legal and extra-legal, as well as numerous other genocidal abuses. Leaders from the Black community, including William Patterson, Paul Robeson, and W.E.B. DuBois presented this petition to the UN in December 1951. However, this accusation was a domestic political act by the Civil Rights Congress, without any reservations that a formal charge would be levied against the U.S. See also Genocide portal Risk factors for genocide # UN risk assessment `` Framework of Analysis for Atrocity Crimes '' Armenian Genocide Command responsibility Human rights abuse International law International human rights law War crimes References Jump up ^ Status of the Convention Archived 24 September 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Jump up ^ Auron, Yair, The Banality of Denial, ( Transaction Publishers, 2004 ), 9. ^ Jump up to : Text of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, website of the UNHCHR. Jump up ^ Robert Gellately & Ben Kiernan ( 2003 ). The Specter of Genocide : Mass Murder in Historical Perspective. Cambridge, UK : Cambridge University Press. p. 267. ISBN 0 - 521 - 52750 - 3. Jump up ^ Staub, Ervin. The Roots of Evil : The Origins of Genocide and Other Group Violence. Cambridge, UK : Cambridge University Press. p. 8. ISBN 0 - 521 - 42214 - 0. Jump up ^ Prevent Genocide International : Declarations and Reservations to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide Jump up ^ United Nations Treaty Collection : Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide Archived 20 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine., STATUS AS AT : 01 - 10 - 2011 07 : 22 : 22 EDT Jump up ^ Hudson, Alexandra ( 26 February 2007 ). `` Serbia cleared of genocide, failed to stop killing ''. Reuters. Jump up ^ ICJ : Summary of the Judgment of 26 February 2007 -- Bosnia v. Serbia Jump up ^ Court Declares Bosnia Killings Were Genocide The New York Times, 26 February 2007. A copy of the ICJ judgement can be found here Archived 28 February 2007 at the Wayback Machine. Jump up ^ John Docker, `` Raphaël Lemkin, creator of the concept of genocide : a world history perspective '', Humanities Research 16 ( 2 ), 2010. Further reading Wikisource has original text related to this article : Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide Henham, Ralph J. ; Chalfont, Paul ; Behrens, Paul ( Editors 2007 ). The criminal law of genocide : international, comparative and contextual aspects, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., ISBN 0 - 7546 - 4898 - 2, ISBN 978 - 0 - 7546 - 4898 - 7 p. 98 Introductory note by William Schabas and procedural history note on the Genocide Convention in the Historic Archives of the United Nations Audiovisual Library of International Law International human rights instruments Declarations Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples Cairo Declaration of Human Rights Declaration of the Rights of the Child Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Universal Declaration of Human Rights American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man Paris Principles International law United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1514 ( XV ) Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples UN Convention Against Torture Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination Convention on the Political Rights of Women Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Convention on the Rights of the Child United Nations Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Regional law African Charter on Human and Peoples ' Rights European Convention on Human Rights Convention for the Prevention of Torture European Convention on Nationality Convention for the Protection of National Minorities Social Charter American Convention on Human Rights Inter-American Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities International humanitarian law Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide Convention relating to the Status of Refugees Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness Geneva Conventions Hague Conventions Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court United Nations António Guterres, Secretary - General Amina J. 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Arendal UNEP - WCMC UNESCO UNFIP UNFPA UN-HABITAT OHCHR UNHCR UNHRC UNICEF UNICRI UNIDIR UNITAR UN-Oceans UNODC UNOPS UNOSAT UNRISD UNRWA UNSSC UNU UNU - OP UNU - CRIS UNV UN Women UNWTO UPU WFP WHO WIPO WMO Members / observers Full members Founding members UNSC Permanent members Observers European Union History League of Nations Four Policemen Declaration by United Nations Peacekeeping missions history timeline Enlargement Resolutions Security Council vetoes General Assembly 66th 67th Security Council Cyprus Iran Iraq Israel Lebanon Nagorno - Karabakh North Korea Palestine Syria Western Sahara Elections Secretary - General ( 2006 2016 ) International Court of Justice 2011 General Assembly President ( 2012 2016 ) Security Council ( 2015 2016 ) Related Bretton Woods system Comprehensive Nuclear - Test - Ban Treaty Criticism Delivering as One Flag Honour Flag Four Nations Initiative Genocide Convention UN Global Compact ICC International Years UN laissez - passer Military Staff Committee Official languages Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons Peacekeeping Treaty Series UN Day Universal Declaration of Human Rights Millennium Declaration Summit Development Goals Security Council veto power UN reform Security Council reform UN Art Collection UN Memorial Cemetery Korea Other Outline UN television film series ( 1964 -- 1966 ) In popular culture Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Genocide_Convention&oldid=814800586 '' Categories : Human rights instruments United Nations treaties International criminal law treaties Genocide Treaties concluded in 1948 Treaties entered into force in 1951 Treaties of the Kingdom of Afghanistan Treaties of the People 's Socialist Republic of Albania Treaties of Algeria Treaties of Andorra Treaties of Antigua and Barbuda Treaties of Argentina Treaties of Armenia Treaties of Australia Treaties of Austria Treaties of Azerbaijan Treaties of the Bahamas Treaties of Bahrain Treaties of Bangladesh Treaties of Barbados Treaties of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic Treaties of Belgium Treaties of Belize Treaties of Bolivia Treaties of Bosnia and Herzegovina Treaties of the Second Brazilian Republic Treaties of the People 's Republic of Bulgaria Treaties of Burkina Faso Treaties of Myanmar Treaties of Burundi Treaties of the French Protectorate of Cambodia Treaties of Canada Treaties of Chile Treaties of the People 's Republic of China Treaties of the Republic of China ( 1949 -- 71 ) Treaties of Colombia Treaties of the Comoros Treaties of Costa Rica Treaties of Ivory Coast Treaties of Croatia Treaties of Cuba Treaties of Cyprus Treaties of the Czech Republic Treaties of Czechoslovakia Treaties of the Republic of the Congo ( Léopoldville ) Treaties of Denmark Treaties of Ecuador Treaties of the Kingdom of Egypt Treaties of El Salvador Treaties of Estonia Treaties of the Ethiopian Empire Treaties of Fiji Treaties of Finland Treaties of the French Fourth Republic Treaties of Gabon Treaties of the Gambia Treaties of Georgia ( country ) Treaties of West Germany Treaties of East Germany Treaties of Ghana Treaties of the Kingdom of Greece Treaties of Guatemala Treaties of Guinea Treaties of Guinea - 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Urundi Treaties extended to the Colony of the Bahamas Treaties extended to British Dominica Treaties extended to the Colony of Fiji Treaties extended to British Grenada Treaties extended to British Saint Lucia Treaties extended to British Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Treaties extended to the Crown Colony of Seychelles Treaties extended to the Kingdom of Tonga ( 1900 -- 70 ) Treaties extended to British Hong Kong Treaties extended to Portuguese Macau Treaties extended to West Berlin Treaties of the Hungarian People 's Republic Treaties of the Polish People 's Republic Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Use dmy dates from June 2011 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikisource Čeština Deutsch Español Français Galego 한국어 Հայերեն Italiano עברית Latina Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Русский Simple English Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Svenska தமிழ் ไทย Türkçe Українська 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 11 December 2017, at 00 : 39. 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Question: international convention on prevention and punishment of genocide 1948
Answer: Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide