Topic:
Country: United arab Emirates
Delegate Name: Sara Gupta
Legal Committee
Definition of Genocide
United Arab Emirates
Sara Gupta, Forest Hills Northern High School
Genocide, since the inception of the United Nations, has been a leading matter of the United Nations’s mission. The horrors and atrocities of the time of World War II prompted the establishment of the United Nations. In attempts to prevent such atrocities in the future, the UN endeavored to create a definition of genocide. The United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide of 1948 adopted the following definition of genocide: “a crime committed with the intent to destroy a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group, in whole or in part.” This definition was adopted by states and acknowledged by the International Court of Justice.
On August 3, 2023, the 9th anniversary of the Yazidi Genocide, the president of the UAE shared his remarks saying, “The 9th anniversary of the crimes committed by the Daesh terrorist group against the Yazidis and others in Iraq is a painful reminder of the importance of embracing peaceful coexistence and rejecting all forms of discrimination based on religion or sect or ethnicity.” In his message, he touches upon one of the UN’s risk factors of genocide. In the UN’s publication, Framework of Analysis for Atrocity Crimes: A Tool for Prevention, risk factor 9 of genocide states: intergroup tensions or patterns of discrimination against protected groups. President Zayed highlights the importance of rejecting all forms of discrimination. The UAE, as a member of the Arab League, accused ISIS of persecuting the Yazidis and committing crimes against humanity.
The United Arab Emirates acceded to the Geneva Conventions and condems all forms of genocide. It recently opted to teach the Holocaust in schools; such curricula were often absent in schools of Arab governments. The UAE believes that a more precise and comprehensive definition of genocide is implementable and that guidelines for preventing genocide are just as important as a clearer definition of genocide. The United Arab Emirates is inclined to work with other nations to elucidate the definition of genocide and identify and justly punish such heinous crimes.
