{"id":290664,"date":"2025-12-09T10:36:49","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T15:36:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/pga\/80\/?p=290664"},"modified":"2025-12-09T13:13:36","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T18:13:36","slug":"pga-remarks-aat-the-high-level-meeting-on-the-10th-anniversary-of-the-international-day-of-commemoration-and-dignity-of-the-victims-of-the-crime-of-genocide-and-of-the-prevention-of-this-crime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/pga\/80\/2025\/12\/09\/pga-remarks-aat-the-high-level-meeting-on-the-10th-anniversary-of-the-international-day-of-commemoration-and-dignity-of-the-victims-of-the-crime-of-genocide-and-of-the-prevention-of-this-crime\/","title":{"rendered":"PGA Remarks at the\u00a0High-level meeting on the 10th anniversary of the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of This Crime"},"content":{"rendered":"

Remarks by the President of the General Assembly\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

H.E. Ms. Annalena Baerbock<\/strong><\/p>\n

at the<\/strong>\u00a0High-level meeting on the 10th anniversary of the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of This Crime<\/strong><\/p>\n

9 December<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>2025<\/strong><\/p>\n

[As <\/strong>delivered<\/strong>]<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Excellencies,<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

80 years ago, the United Nations was founded on a solemn promise: \u201cNever Again\u201d.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Never again would humanity witness atrocities like the Holocaust, in which over six million Jews were murdered just because they were Jews.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Never again would we allow the systematic murder of a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This is why, after establishing the United Nations, Member States adopted the Genocide Convention\u2014affirming their determination that such crimes must never happen again.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Yet that promise has been broken.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Not once. Not twice. But repeatedly.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

From the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda to the genocide against Bosniaks in Srebrenica, and other atrocities that appall humanity\u2019s conscience.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Millions of people have been killed as a result of this heinous crime.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

These are not abstract figures or anonymous tragedies.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Genocide challenges the whole international system as it contradicts the core principles of our institution and the universality of human rights.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So it\u2019s no surprise that especially the survivors today are in fact the strongest advocates for human rights ensuring these crimes never happen again.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

People like Immacul\u00e9e Ilibagiza, who hid in a cramped bathroom for 91 days while her family was killed in the Tutsi genocide, and who now teaches humanity about resilience and reconciliation.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

People like Nadia Murad, who lost her mother and brothers in the Yazidi genocide and has been through the worst sexual slavery hell herself but nevertheless has transformed her unimaginable suffering into a global call for dignity and justice.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

They speak out for the millions who never had that chance.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

To remind us that their horrors did not come out of the blue, that there were alarming signals of massive violations of human rights and international humanitarian law which never should be ignored again.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Excellencies,<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In this light, the international community has set up international institutions for example the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court, not only to hold perpetrators accountable but also act as early warnings to determine whether such massive human rights and international humanitarian law violations constitute international crimes.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

For example in the current cases with regard to the Rohingya Muslim minority in Myanmar, with regard to the abhorrent and unjustifiable atrocities committed on 7 October in Israel, the unspeakable and unacceptable scale of civilian suffering in Gaza, or the mass killings and sexual violence in Sudan.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This 10th Anniversary, this International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime is thus not only a moment of remembrance, it is a wake-up call to take action.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide is clear: States have a duty to prevent genocide, and to ensure accountability when it occurs.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

To meet that duty, we must strengthen the tools at our disposal:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

First, we have to heed early-warnings and act when the alarm sounds.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It is not only related to inter-state wars, but often it grows from systematic human rights violations and the erosion of the rule of law within societies or within countries.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Therefore, preventing genocide means strengthening universal human rights and their relevant bodies like the Human Rights Council and other institutions.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The voices of civil society, journalists, and human rights defenders on the ground are critical in this regard.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Second, States have to ensure unhindered humanitarian access where populations are at risk.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This is essential to saving lives, supporting survivors, and enabling credible investigations.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

And third, those who commit, incite, or facilitate genocide must be held accountable without delay and without exception.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

We have an obligation to implement the Genocide Convention in full, not only to provide justice to the victims, but also to deter future perpetrators.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Allow me to reaffirm: preventing genocide is a shared responsibility.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

That means every Member State. Every politician. Every diplomat.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Genocide anywhere is a threat to peace, security, and human rights everywhere.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

As Holocaust survivor Simon Wiesenthal said, \u201cFor evil to flourish, it only requires good men to do nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So today let us renew our solemn commitment: to remember the victims of genocide, to restore their dignity, and to uphold the enduring promise of \u201cNever Again\u201d.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n