My daughter once asked me if I would go back to being a pastry chef (my former profession) if genocide ended. I said, of course. While the question might seem ridiculous, what I most appreciate about it is her absolute sense of hope. She believes in a world free from persecution, free from attempts to erase and destroy entire populations. It is with that sense of hope that I remain committed to this work. Never Again doesn’t have to be hollow if we remain committed.
Today is International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime, a long name for a seemingly unsolvable crime. December 9 is also the anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in 1948. Seventy four years later, would the signers of the convention believe that atrocities, including genocide, continue to be committed with impunity? Why is it that the world continues to fall flat on the pledge of never again? The U.S. alone has determined that genocide occurred in Bosnia, Rwanda, Iraq, Darfur, areas under control of ISIS, China, Burma and Armenia. Journalist Philip Gourevitch once wrote, “. . the problem remains that denouncing evil is a far cry from doing good.” This leads to the bigger question, what does “doing good” look like and how can we truly prevent and end genocide?
To answer this question, let’s look at one example.
In March of this year, Secretary of State Blinken announced the determination by the U.S. that genocide had been committed against the Rohingya of Burma, at the hands of the Burmese military. If you were a Rohingya refugee living in Bangladesh, you might have thought that was a signal that further action was planned. After all, the U.S. had been sitting on its own report with the evidence for more than three years. The U.S. did commit to more financial assistance for the UN’s Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar to document and preserve evidence of crimes committed against the Rohingya. While acknowledgement of a genocide is an critical step, it isn’t the most important. Evidence preservation is also essential, in order to achieve legal accountability.
What is most crucial though, is addressing the root causes of a genocide. Without this, the genocide will go on perpetually, or until a community truly is erased. Policy decisions and a lack of political will often stand in the way of confronting the underlying situation that lead to a genocide. In the case of the Rohingya, the U.S. has failed to take meaningful action that will impede the Myanmar military’s ongoing carte blanche. This means cutting off the junta’s revenue sources, namely Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise; as well as limiting their ability to commit violent acts, through both an arms embargo and ban on jet fuel. While each of these actions is paramount to weakening the junta, they will be more effective if done multilaterally. Engagement with the National Unity Government and National Unity Consultative Council is also critical to push for equitable inclusion of the Rohingya in all elements of a future federal Myanmar. Creating conditions conducive for repatriation will take time. In the meantime, the rights of Rohingya, wherever they are seeking safety, must be respected. If all of these actions were taken, we would be doing good.
So where do things stand? Are these actions being taken? We welcome the inclusion of the BURMA Act in the final version of the FY2023 National Defense Authorization Act. This bill will help to create a more comprehensive U.S. policy towards Myanmar. However, the bill has been greatly pared down and language on the Rohingya has been stripped. In Bangladesh, Rohingya are experiencing a continued stripping of rights, with limited access to education and livelihoods, restrictions on freedom of movement and civil society organizing and serious protection concerns. Rohingya still living in Rakhine State are also living in dire conditions. With no safe alternatives, Rohingya have been attempting to flee to safety in record numbers. Just this week multiple boats carrying Rohingya refugees have been stranded at sea as they seek safety in other countries. Only one boat has been rescued thus far and Rohingya refugees on it were handed over to Myanmar military officials. All of this begs the question, are we doing good or is the international community not only failing the Rohingya, but possibly complicit in the attempted erasure?
This brings me back to the signatories of the Genocide Convention seventy four years ago. Was their intention merely to recognize genocide? No. It was a collective pledge stating, “genocide, whether committed in time of peace or in time of war, is a crime under international law which [we] undertake to prevent and to punish.” It is our moral obligation to do everything we can to end genocide. By addressing the root causes, not only will we play a role in ending the Rohingya genocide; these actions will contribute to a just and inclusive Myanmar for all of its people. In order to do this, and in all cases of persecution no matter where they occur, we must do the following:
Listen to affected communities
Learn how we can support community-led efforts
Remember that we cannot continue to repeat history
Act with hope, commitment and in solidarity
Together we can and will end genocide.
Lauren Fortgang is the co-founder and director of the Never Again Coalition.