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Presenting the Tireless Voices of Prevention

According to international law, the obligation to prevent genocide and other international crimes falls primarily on States. However, individuals and organizations across the world have been assuming the responsibility to take positive action to promote a culture of peace and non-violence that includes the respect for diversity and non-discrimination, very often in the face of adversity and sometimes danger. Their work on these and other fundamental human rights standards supports prevention of genocide and related atrocity crimes.

They are men, women and youth, members of civil society organizations, as well as survivors of past genocides or other international crimes, who believe we all have a role to play in building a world free from genocidal and related violence.

The is in honor of Raphael Lemkin, the Polish Lawyer who coined the term genocide in 1943, in response to the horrors of the Holocaust. Lemkin dedicated much of his life to the creation and codification of genocide as a crime under international law, as now set out in the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Lemkin also played a key role in advoacing for the ratification and implementation of the Convention by States. Lemkin was a Champion of Prevention. Lemkin hoped the Convention would become a living force in a world society and a protective wing for all groups at risk.

These Raphael Lemkin ¡°Champions of Prevention¡± serve as examples and inspiration to all of us and their actions honor the victims of this egregious crime. On the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and the 2023 International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime, the Office of the Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide is honored to present their work.