International group of scholars accuse Mugabe of genocide

By Alex Bell
13 January 2009

An international group of scholars on genocide have for the first time used the word genocide in conjunction with the actions of Robert Mugabe.

In a statement posted on its website, the International Association of
Genocide Scholars called for the UN Security Council to refer Mugabe to
the International Criminal Court for prosecution. The scholars say Mugabe is now ‘committing genocide by attrition’ which they say falls under the provision of the UN Genocide Convention, outlawing acts that “deliberately inflict on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction, in whole or in part.” The group wrote this week that Mugabe’s
“apparent intention is to destroy his political and ethnic enemies in Zimbabwe.”

The ‘genocide’ label has for months started surfacing in conjunction with the crisis Zimbabwe is suffering at the hands of the ageing dictator, and various rights activists and campaigners have called for Mugabe to be held accountable for the genocidal numbers of people that have died. But no single organisation has publicly stated what is an obvious truth, in a country where untold thousands of men, women and children have died. Zimbabwe has the lowest life expectancy of any country in the world, with women not expected to live past 34 and men are not expected to live longer than 37.

Meanwhile, the International Bar Association has said it will push for accountability against Mugabe’s government, saying the Southern African Development Coimmunity (SADC) has an obligation “to act on the crimes of Robert Mugabe’s government.” Mark Ellis, Executive Director of the International Bar Association, this week lashed out at SADC, explaining the regional body “has blocked outside initiatives to hold Mugabe’s regime accountable for its abuses and has been silent while international law is violated with impunity.”