Genocide: A Normative Account

Abstract

Genocide: A Normative Account, by Larry May, Cambridge University Press, 2010, 296 pp., ISBN: 978-0-521-12296-2Abstract: Academics studying genocide are required, amid the exigency of predicting and preventing further instances of this crime, to extend their efforts so as to connect with policy makers, provide vital information, respond to particular instances of genocide or state-inspired genocida! campaigns, and prompt a political will to intervene at any stage in this crime. May2 starts by placing genocide studies in the normative foundation of this discipline. In this work, which stands as the fourth volume of a broader project that assesses the "conceptual and normative underpinnings of this 'crime of crimes'", genocide is treated as the most serious of all international crimes. May calls for additional work to be performed to include other forms and conceptualizations of genocide such as cultural genocide and ethnic cleansing. The book outlines the fundamental concepts behind the crime, its study, and the discipline, while offering a unique presentation of "special problems of genocide". It also considers steps that should be taken forward with the view of facilitating reconciliation. May refers to war as the final response to genocidaI situations, not the first, stating that, "there are situations where there is not unambiguous groups of victims". Thus, humanitarian intervention, as a viable approach to mitigating acts of genocide, is still difficult to justify.Keywords: genocide, humanitarian intervention, Rwanda massacresThe study of genocide as an exceptional academic discipline still faces scores of challenges irrespective of its attempts to build upon critical knowledge and understanding amid the exigency of predicting and preventing further instances of this crime. Consequently, academics working in this discipline are required, to an overwhelming degree, to extend their efforts well beyond the ivory tower so as to connect with policy makers in government positions, provide vital information about crimes against humanity, respond to particular instances of genocide or state-inspired genocidal campaigns, and bring about the creation of a political will to intervene at any stage in this crime. Presently, however, a rather poor track record has been displayed within the paradigm of genocide studies when it comes to prohibiting genocides on multiple levels and in all categories of intensity and scale.In order to make a rare contribution to the many debates stemming from the field of genocide studies, May starts by placing the inherent problems of this discipline within the context of its normative, moral, and international criminal law foundations. Originally conceived of as what he describes as a paper-length project, this work stands as the fourth volume of a much broader project that brilliantly and cogently assesses the "conceptual and normative underpinnings of this 'crime of crimes'" (p. 1). Genocide is treated as the most serious of all international crimes, yet May considers genocide no less serious than other international crimes, and calls for additional work to be performed in continuing to change and broaden the status of these studies. The ultimate aim of these efforts should be the inclusion of other forms and conceptualizations of genocide such as cultural genocide and ethnic cleansing while the list of protected groups should also be expanded so that others like gender and political groups are included.This book is comprised of thirteen concise chapters developed in order to fit neatly into categories that cleanly outline the fundamental concepts behind the crime, its study, and the discipline as engaged with actual cases. The latter section of the work offers a unique presentation of "special problems of genocide" that connects with some of the problems that have surfaced as a result of reasonably attempting to assuage the motivation of perpetrators of past acts. It also considers steps that should be taken forward with the view of facilitating reconciliation. …