Ethnic cleansing is the use of violence to create an ethnically homogeneous area through the forced removal of members of a distinct group from a given territory. It is a form of forcible population transfer and therefore a violation of international law. It is also a crime against humanity, and a war crime under the laws of armed conflict (General Assembly resolution 47/121).
Although contested as to its origin, the term has gained wide currency in contemporary discussions. Its ambiguity has been largely the result of its vagueness and its connotations with the political ideology of ethnic nationalism. It has been used to describe forcible population transfers that may have been motivated by the desire to create a homogeneous nation-state or to support claims for change to international borders or to consolidate control over disputed territorial areas. The concept, however, can be applied more broadly and arguably includes forcible population movements based on other distinguishable criteria such as religion or race.
The ICTY has distinguished between ethnic cleansing and genocide in its jurisprudence. Its Trial Chamber Judgment of 2 August 2001 observed that, although there are obvious similarities between a genocidal policy and the policies commonly known as “ethnic cleansing”, ‘the expulsion or extermination of groups of persons does not in itself suffice for a finding of the offence of genocide’.
The ICRC has stated that, unlike evacuations which as temporary measures may occasionally be justifiable, the displacement of individuals for the purpose of ethnic cleansing is never justifiable. It is a form of forcible and unjustified mass removal that violates the most fundamental human rights.
About the Author
