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22 Trinity C.L. Rev. 77 (2019)
Revisiting the Interpretation of the Protected Groups of the Genocide Convention in Light of the Rohingya Case

handle is hein.journals/trinclr22 and id is 87 raw text is: REVISITING THE INTERPRETATION OF THE PROTECTED GROUPS OF THE GENOCIDE CONVENTION IN LIGHT OF THE ROHINGYA CASE ADRIA FERRER-MONFORT* Introduction As the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide ('Genocide Convention') marks its 70th anniversary,' there is ongoing debate as to whether the acts instigated against the Rohingya in Myanmar (formerly known as Burma) constitute genocide. The Genocide Convention defines genocide as the deliberate destruction of a group of people because of their ethnicity, nationality, religion, or race.2 However, the elements of this crime are rarely satisfied in practice and most atrocities do not qualify as what has been called the 'crime of crimes'.' The reluctance to use the term genocide is particularly evident in the response to the Rohingya crisis. What is being inflicted on the Rohingya people has been labelled as 'crimes against humanity' rather than as genocide. While the scale of atrocities may be identical in both crimes, the perpetrator's intent to annihilate a protected group is a special feature of genocide. In 2017, the former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, defined Myanmar's campaign against the Rohingya as 'a textbook example of ethnic cleansing' but implied that there was not enough information to call the situation genocide.4 Conversely, the UN Fact- * LL.B. (University of Valencia), BA (University of Valencia), MA (Miguel Hernindez University of Elche), LLM (International Law), University of Bristol. The author would like to dedicate this paper to his parents, Maria Jose and Francesc. Of course, the author is also immensely grateful to Stavroula for her unconditional support, patience and insightful comments. Finally, the author would like to give a special thanks to Dr Jane Rooney for her inspiring lectures and advice on an earlier version of this paper, although any errors are my own. 1 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (adopted 9 December 1948, entered into force 1951) 78 UNTS 277 (Genocide Convention). 2 ibid art 2. 3 The Prosecutor v Kambanda (Judgment) ICTR-97-23-S (4 September 1998) para 16. See also William Schabas, 'Genocide' in William Schabas (ed), The UN International Criminal Tribunals: The Former Yugoslavia, Rwanda and Sierra Leone (CUP 2006) 161, 162. 4 OHCHR, 'Darker and more dangerous: High Commissioner updates the Human Rights Council on Human Rights Issues in 40 Countries' © 2019 Adria Ferrer-Monfort and Dublin University Law Society

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