John Kerry announced yesterday (Thursday the 16th) that the U.S. Department of State recognized the atrocities committed against minority groups such as the Kurdish in northern Iraq and Syria and Shiite Muslims in southern Iraq. This is the first time since 2004 that the United States has officially declared a group "genocidal." This comes as no surprise to anyone, even Kerry who announced it. In early 2014, Kerry had stated that the rise of the Islamic State showed "all the warning signs of genocide." And it was also obvious to those voting in the House, as the vote was 393-0 favoring the declaration. In his final words of the press conference Kerry put it bluntly, stating that "[ISIS] is genocidal by self-acclimation, by ideology, and by practice."So what? Why does it matter what we call them? At least on an emotional level, this shows respect to the minority groups victimized by atrocities in their rightful lands, as the United States is willing to call their suffering what it actually is, a genocide of their people. In addition, however, this declaration puts additional pressure on the White House to act and puts pressure internationally to assemble a more passionate coalition against ISIS (if that is even possible, considering the UN had already declared crimes committed by ISIS genocidal). The declaration by the State Department also establishes ISIS as the main focus of counter-terrorism in the world, which is also fairly redundant. What is most important about this declaration is that it forces President Barack Obama to make a decision on how aggressive his actions against ISIS will be and if he will change his approach to counter-terrorism because it has become more than just terrorism in these countries. It would also greatly encourage an increased ease of access by refugees into the United States as well as those who follow in our footsteps. Other than the political ramifications, there is no legal entity or procedure for dealing with an official genocide so technically there is nothing forcing the government to change its approach.
Here are my questions then.
Are there any real ramifications of this, if so, what are they? Is this a meaningful step towards multilateralism or a signal that the U.S. is behind the times?
If you do think that this is unnecessarily redundant, then why did John Kerry and the State Department feel it should be said anyway? Why does the government feel it is necessary to say these things if they have no legal obligation to act upon it?
If you do think it is necessary, will there be any reason for the White House to change its procedures against ISIS? What are your theories on how our foreign policy will change?
http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/17/politics/us-iraq-syria-genocide/index.html
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/03/isis-genocide-obama/474087/
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-john-kerry-obama-administration-declares-isis-guilty-of-genocide/
7 comments:
I think that because the US Department of State has declared the actions of ISIS genocidal, this puts pressure not only on the United States to act, but on the United Nations as well. I think that this was necessary for Kerry to say because I feel this is the starting point of the United States government officially recognizing the atrocities occurring in the Middle East. I am not sure if the Obama administration will take much action due to the fact that Obama has traditionally not wanted to involve the United States in the affairs of the Middle East. However, I think that it is necessary for us to help the targets of ISIS to safety in order to show that we are advocates for human rights around the world. For the past few years, the United States has not taken action in important world events, and I feel that this may not change immediately, but it will gradually change over the next few months/year. I think that other countries will not take actions until the United States acts, and I think that right now, we must act to some degree.
The ramifications of this declaration are not yet quite known. However, naming a group genocidal automatically calls attention to their heinous crimes and strikes a nerve in people, appealing to their sympathy rather than just stating that ISIS is a threat or dangerous. I believe that this statement was a little bit behind the time as the UN had already recognized the acts of ISIS as genocidal and the US has been relatively slow in any action to stop the progression of the Islamic State. John Kerry likely made this statement to draw attention to the gravity of the situation and how important it is that not only the US, but other nations as well, join forces and work to combat ISIS. Even though the government has no legal obligation to act in the case of a genocide it makes them look a lot worse if they don't. Many people look back on the Khmer Rouge and Rwandan genocides and are horrified at the lack of global action to stop them and the suffering that resulted, the killing fields and destruction of cultural groups. I believe that Kerry is attempting to call the US to action and take arms against ISIS and stop the genocide from occurring. Maybe he is hoping that the international community will have learned from the past and understand that the rise of a militaristic, genocidal, terrorist group is a threat to the entire world. I would like to think that the US would work to stop ISIS and prevent the death of more and more people; however, the process is slow and there is clear gridlock between Congress and Obama. As a result, it is difficult to say how much real progress is made .
http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/isis-terror/john-kerry-isis-committing-genocide-n540706
I believe it is very important that this declaration was made, as the people before me have stated, this brings the necessary attention to the issue. Also by declaring ISIS as genocidal, that also means that it is an "international crime under the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (CPPCG), which has two components, prevent and punish."
This will significantly benefit the people who are suffering as a result of ISIS because now the world is looking at ISIS's actions and acting on their atrocities. Hopefully this declaration will encourage America and other countries to take action and open refugee camps.
http://abcnews.go.com/International/stake-us-isis-committed-genocide/story?id=37723660
I agree with Athena that John Kerry calling ISIS out like this legitimizes them in a way that somewhat forces the United States to action. Not calling anything a genocide since 2004 surely should put into perspective just how serious this problem is. ISIS kills en masse in a way that breaks any pretense of humanitarianism. I agree with 2Chainz that this shows respect for the minorities that are being slaughtered. If we stand in solidarity with them it certainly shows the United States in a positive light, making up for a lot of the bad publicity we have given ourselves in the Middle East in recent years.In lieu of the precedent of dictatorship creation and regime change that has marked our involvement with developing nations, we need to stand up for those oppressed by brutal genocidal maniacs like ISIS. Perhaps Obama will step up out air strikes or receive international support that we have craved.
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/03/isis-genocide-obama/474087/
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-john-kerry-obama-administration-declares-isis-guilty-of-genocide/
Nice launch! I'd like to add to the discussion a bit by talking about prosecuted Christians in Iraq and Syria. Coptic and Miaphysite Christians have been oppressed since the Seljuks ruled the Middle East, and now the Assad regime, some rebel groups and especially ISIS are horribly oppressive to them, forgetting any signs of tolerance.
Now, that is not to say that Christians are any more important than any other group being targeted by genocide. However, the international ramifications are quite different. The West is more likely to react with greater force if the public was fully aware of their oppression. The Pope recently met with the Ecumenical Patriarch of the Greek Orthodox Church, the first meeting between the two offices in hundreds of years, to discuss this very issue. And certain conservative politicians in the U.S. who support "making the sand glow" react more strongly to Christian oppression than other groups. This definitely is a relevant part of the international response.
I feel like declaring what is going on as genocide is a good decision that doesn't change much currently, but down the road it will have more positive effects. People all know what is going on, but there are those around the world who are reluctant to act. This will call more to attention to the problems that are going on right now. The world needs to band together against the terrorists that are killing many people. The United Nations will be more pressured to act against the Islamic State, and hopefully we can put a stop against what is going on. Obama too might make some more actions despite leaving office soon, but he doesn't seem like one to sit around and wait for his term to end. I know when it came to the Rwandan genocide, the UN ended up not being able to do much, so hopefully there are more policies that have been enacted this time that will allow them to truly act.
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