Politicide is the deliberate physical destruction or elimination of a group whose members oppose a governing regime or share a political affiliation, distinguished from genocide, which targets people for a racial, ethnic, national or religious identity. The term was developed by social scientists Ted Robert Gurr and Barbara Harff to describe mass killing of political opponents that falls outside the legal definition of genocide, since the Genocide Convention specifically excludes political groups from its own protection. Politicide targets victims for their hierarchical position or opposition to a regime and its dominant groups, rather than for a shared communal identity.
Facts
Elements of OffensePoliticide is defined as the deliberate physical destruction or elimination of a group whose members oppose a governing regime or share the characteristic of belonging to a political movement, a concept developed by Ted Robert Gurr and Barbara Harff to describe mass killing of political opponents falling outside the Genocide Convention's protected categories. 1 Notable ExampleThe 1965 to 1966 mass killings of Indonesian communists, which caused an estimated 500,000 to 3 million deaths, are cited as an example of politicide, since victims were targeted for political affiliation rather than for membership in a category the Genocide Convention itself protects. 1 Classification
Offense GradeSerious or Indictable Offense 1 Sources
1. Political cleansing of a population (Wikipedia)
Politicide section
the deliberate physical destruction or elimination of a group whose members oppose a regime or share the main characteristic of belonging to a political movement
Genocide Convention section
The massacres of Indonesian communists, that caused between 500,000 and 3 million deaths, are also considered by many as a genocide.
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