Holding Back the Tide: Genocide Prevention in Our More Violent World

For all the progress that was made in building barriers against genocide – and we should not shy away from acknowledging that significant progress was indeed made – we find ourselves facing a major problem. History is taking its revenge. Since the start of the ‘Arab Spring’ in early 2011, global trends in mass violence have moved consistently in the wrong direction. The number of armed conflicts have increased. Some reports suggest a six-hundred fold increase in the annual number of civilian casualties in war. Atrocity crimes are committed with increasing regularity. Perpetrators exhibit a confidence bred of impunity. Forced displacement – both internal and international – has reached levels not seen since the end of the Second World War. I want to examine this global crisis and enquire into its causes and consequences. I also want to suggest some steps that can be taken to turn the tide. I want to argue that although the struggle against genocide and mass atrocities is today confronting an acute crisis, there are grounds for thinking that determined action can hold back the tide of hate. This can be done by reinvigorating a global politics based on fundamental human rights, collective action and accountability.