Genocide: why we apply the term sparingly

It is regarded as the worst of all crimes, but what constitutes genocide?

How does it differ from crimes against humanity? How are the atrocities of 1970’s Cambodia different from 1990’s Rwanda? What about Myanmar, or Xinjiang in China? Why have so few people ever been convicted of genocide? And why do human rights groups themselves use the term so carefully?

In this episode host Imogen Foulkes puts those questions to Paola Gaeta, Professor of International Law at Geneva’s Graduate Institute, Ken Roth, Executive Director of Human Rights Watch, and analyst Daniel Warner.

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