The role of national definitions of the crime of genocide in developing a definition of the crime of genocide in international law

Abstract

Thank you for the introduction and for the kind words. It is nice to be here and to have this opportunity to speak on this occasion. The Baltic states have been struggling to investigate and to prosecute international crimes committed during Soviet occupation, as well as acquainting the rest of the world with the idea that such crimes were indeed international crimes, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and even genocide. It has been a bumpy road, as can also be witnessed by Lithuanian cases such as Vasiliauskas and Drėlingas. In my very short intervention, allow me to comment on the definition of the crime of genocide from that perspective. As generally known, the universally recognised definition embraces four protected groups: ethnic, national, religious, and racial groups. Any other common denominators of persons have consciously, or I would even say maliciously, been exempted from the circle of protected groups.