Концепція злочину геноциду Рафала Лемкіна: становлення, трансформація, сучасне значення

The article considers the formation and development of the concept of the crime of genocide of the prominent Polish-American lawyer Rafał (Raphael) Lemkin (1900–1959), as well as analyzes its modern meaning. The article establishes main biographical information about Lemkin; it is emphasized that the young years of his life are closely connected with the lands of present-day Ukraine: he studied at the Department of Law of Lviv University, worked as a junior prosecutor (assistant prosecutor) of the district court in Berezhany in the Ternopil region. It has been established that the first attempt at the international legal level to provide for punishment for acts committed not against individuals, but against groups of people on a certain basis or against individuals, if they are considered as representatives of these groups, was the concept of “acts of barbarity” and “acts of vandalism”, proposed by Lemkin in 1933. It is emphasized that these concepts formed the basis of the concept of “genocide” proposed by him. It is stated that the term “genocide” to a greater extent reflected the concept of “acts of bar-barity” previously proposed by Lemkin, although it also included the essential components of “acts of vandalism”. The article establishes that Rafał Lemkin’s views on the essence and ways to counteract the crime of genocide eventually formed the basis of the provisions of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide of 1948, of which he was the main author. It has been found that the text of this Convention does not fully reflect the totality of Lemkin’s views on the crime of genocide. It is stated that later this discrepancy led to problems in the qualification of specific acts as genocide. The significance of the concept of the crime of genocide by Rafał Lemkin for the present is analyzed. For this purpose, in particular, the criminal legislation of European states is studied in order to find out how the legislators of foreign states implemented the provisions of the Genocide Convention. It is emphasized that special attention should be paid to the identification by some legislators of other groups of people, not mentioned in international legal acts, against whom genocide is committed, as well as the expansion of the list of actions that form the objective side of this crime. Particular attention is paid to the Italian experience of the desire to criminalize cultural genocide, which conceptually reflects the views of Rafał Lemkin. It is suggested that some other national legislators will soon follow a similar path.