No turning a blind eye to genocide, says Ramaphosa

President Cyril Ramaphosa said it was in the face of callous indifference from the international community that the atrocities in Rwanda happened.

He said it should never be that atrocities, gross human rights violations and genocide should somehow carry less weight because of the race, ethnicity or religious affiliation of the victims.

“It was only several decades later that a number of the ‘bystanders to the genocide’ apologised for failing to act when the killings happened. As they were for the families of those who perished in the Rwandan genocide, for today’s genocide victims apologies are too little, too late.”

In his weekly newsletter, Ramaphosa said the world must never close its eyes to genocide, and we owe it to the victims of all the world’s genocides to not betray their memories by looking away, failing to act or, worst of all, by claiming we didn’t know. 

“The advent of 24-hour news, the proliferation of social and community media and the speed with which information is disseminated in the digital age makes it nearly impossible for mass atrocities to occur under conditions of secrecy.”

The president reflected on what he described as one of the worst mass murders in recent times on African soil when about 1-million men, women and children were slaughtered within 100 days in Rwanda in an orchestrated campaign of violence that involved organs of state, civilians, militias, the local media and even churches.

“The Rwandan genocide was one of the darkest chapters in human history. It was an atrocity that unfolded as the world looked on and failed to act. There was little intervention from the international community.

“Despite a warning from the head of the UN deployment stationed in Rwanda that a mass extermination of Rwandan Tutsi people was imminent, the UN peacekeepers failed to prevent the killings, arguing their mandate was limited and they lacked authority to intervene.”

Ramaphosa said instead, peacekeepers were ordered to focus on evacuating expatriates desperate to flee the country.

“Several western countries, some of which had a presence in Rwanda, would later say they were not aware of the extent of the killings. Thirty years later, no country or international body can any longer say ‘we didn’t know’ and use that claim as justification for a failure to act.”

The president affirmed that it is because of the stated commitment to never again allow atrocities of this kind that the world cannot stand idly by as another genocide is carried out, this time against the people of Palestine in Gaza Strip.

“Nobody can claim ignorance about what is happening in Gaza because, unlike in Rwanda in 1994, the atrocities are being televised, written about, tweeted and live streamed.

“It is close to six months since Israel unleashed a campaign of violence on the people of Gaza in response to the atrocities committed by Hamas. 

“More than 32,000 Gazans have been killed. According to the UN Children’s Fund, about 13,000 of the casualties are children. Civilians, non-combatants, women, persons with disabilities, journalists and even aid workers have not been spared.”

Late last year, South Africa instituted proceedings against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague for violating its obligations under the convention on the prevention and punishment of the crime of genocide with respect to its actions in Gaza. 

The ICJ, the principal judicial organ of the UN, declared measures Israel should take to prevent the commission of all acts falling within the scope of the Genocide Convention.

The court directed Israel, among other things, to ensure its military did not commit such acts, to prevent and punish the direct and public incitement to commit genocide, and to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza.

However, in clear defiance Israel had intensified its violence against the residents of Gaza, Ramaphosa said.

“These people are also facing starvation and famine as the delivery of aid continues to be disrupted, including the killing of humanitarian and aid workers.

“Last week the ICJ issued additional measures, ordering Israel to take the necessary and effective measures to ensure ‘unhindered provision at scale’ of basic services and humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza. The court accepted South Africa’s argument that, contrary to what Israel claimed, the UN agencies are not being assisted to get aid flowing into Gaza.”

The president said the court also ordered Israel to “ensure with immediate effect that its military does not commit acts which constitute a violation of any of the rights of the Palestinians in Gaza as a protected group” under the Genocide Convention.

“When the Rwandan genocide unfolded in 1994, the Genocide Convention had been in existence for nearly half a century, having been adopted in 1948 in the aftermath of World War 2.” 

Ramaphosa recalled that the terrible events in Rwanda in 1994 took place in the year South Africans attained their freedom, being mindful that freedom comes with a responsibility to work for peace, justice and human rights everywhere.

“It is a duty and a standard we will continuously strive to uphold, not only for ourselves but for all peoples, everywhere.”

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