by Bryan8063 [Lorebrary Editor]
This Chamber’s hold on the truth was finally lost on the Ghorman Plaza. What took place yesterday, what happened yesterday on Ghorman was unprovoked genocide. Yes! Genocide! And that truth has been exiled from this Chamber!
This quote comes from Senator Mon Mothma’s crucial speech in the Galactic Senate (Andor, episode 9). We see the word genocide thrown around a bit, but this term is very important. It is not thrown around in diplomatic circles. When diplomats and members of government use it, it means something.
In recent history, we hear about the Armenians, Jews, Cambodians, Bosnians, Kurds, Tutsis, Darfurians, and more.
In 2021, President Joe Biden was the first American president to formally recognize the Armenian genocide. It caused a stir in Turkey and even a response by the Turkish foreign ministry, saying it “will open a deep wound…”
This term has power and not just in language. When the U.S. government says genocide, this brings legal action. Legally, labeling something as genocide has serious implications under international law, especially under the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention.
Here is what I mean from policy makers themselves. I got these quotes from the presidential oral history program at the Miller Center (University of Virginia):
Interviewer:
In that period, were there discussions in your office about when the word “genocide” is to be used [regarding Bosnia]?
Bill Clinton Speechwriter Edward Widmer:
There definitely were. I did not write that speech, but a senior speechwriter who was leaving did. He was in very serious conversations. That’s a very good question. The use of that word is extremely complicated because the second it is used we are legally obligated to prevent it from happening, which means sending in troops, so it can't be used frivolously. There were NSC [National Security Council] lawyers and State Department lawyers whose job is basically to prevent it from being used. The U.S. government is designed to have people clashing over all of these issues and it is often kind of nasty. I think in that case a high-level decision was made that it was all right to use it.
Secretary of State Colin Powell:
So it was me who declared what happened in Darfur genocide. My lawyer said, ‘You can call it either way--it's a close call.’ Come on, Will, you can do better than that; give me a legal reason. He said, ‘I'm sorry, boss, but it's a close call, so that's what you're the Secretary for.’
So I said, ‘It is so ugly I can't stand it; I'm going to call it a genocide.’ I went downstairs to the press room and I did. I told the White House I was going to do it. But it was weeks before the President would say, ‘I agree with what Secretary Powell said.’ Not, ‘I consider it genocide.’ So I think we were the spokesmen for foreign policy.
So, what does it mean in the Star Wars universe?
The Jedi can be added to the list of victims above. It is possible to imagine that in the Old Republic, there would have been laws on the books about genocide. If there were allegations of genocide, the Jedi would investigate, and the Republic forces would follow up with them. However, with the emperor, even if such a law exists, he has legal and enforcement powers, so the term and its legal mechanisms are washed out. Perhaps, the Empire would even use the term for its purposes. Who knows what kind of propaganda Palpatine used to support the genocide of the Jedi? Traitors, most likely.
Yet, as Mothma’s speech illustrates, the term still resonates with free people in the galaxy. It will help propel the rebellion to galvanize and ultimately win.