Darfur and Genocide–Intent versus Motive
Professor Eric Reeves of Smith College has written a compelling op-ed piece in the Boston Globe wherein he addresses the current situation in Darfur:
DOES GENOCIDE continue in Darfur? Do we still see “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, [Darfur's African ethnic groups] as such,” the high standard set by the 1948 UN Genocide Convention? The question acquires urgency as skepticism grows in some quarters about the intentions of Khartoum’s Islamist regime. Genocide is a crime of intent, not motive; if the intention of Khartoum is no longer genocidal, their moral and negotiating equities change considerably in any peace talks with fractious rebel groups.
Thus, there can be a situation in which the motive to commit genocide no longer exists, or is no longer active, but the intent to commit genocide still operates. The rest of Reed’s article helps explain this crucial distinction.
