A/HRC/RES/49/9
Condemning impunity for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, and
emphasizing the responsibility of States to comply with their obligations under relevant
international instruments to end impunity and, to that end, to thoroughly investigate and
prosecute persons responsible for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes or other
massive, serious or systematic violations of human rights and international humanitarian law
in order to avoid their recurrence and to seek sustainable peace, justice, truth and
reconciliation, and in this regard stressing also the importance of strengthening the capacity
of domestic jurisdictions and inter-State cooperation,
Acknowledging the significant progress made by the international community,
including within the United Nations system, in developing relevant mechanisms and
practices to prevent and punish the crime of genocide, thereby contributing to the effective
implementation of the Convention,
Recalling General Assembly resolution 96 (I) of 11 December 1946, in which the
Assembly declared genocide a crime under international law, and all subsequent resolutions
within the United Nations system that have contributed to the establishment and development
of the process of prevention and punishment of the crime of genocide, including Assembly
resolution 60/1 of 16 September 2005,
Acknowledging with appreciation that genocide is defined among the most serious
crimes of concern to the international community as a whole in the Rome Statute of the
International Criminal Court, and also acknowledging the role of the Court and other relevant
international criminal tribunals in helping to increase accountability for the crime of
genocide,
Stressing the importance of the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees
of non-recurrence to the prevention of genocide, and also stressing that perpetrators of this
crime should be held criminally accountable on the national or international level,
Acknowledging the work of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice,
reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence and its positive impact on the prevention of gross
violations of human rights and serious violations of international humanitarian law through
a holistic approach to transitional justice,
Acknowledging also the reports of the Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights on the right to the truth, 1 and encouraging States to
cooperate with the Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and
guarantees of non-recurrence,
Encouraging States to promote the ascertainment of the truth by appropriate means as
an important element in combating impunity and promoting accountability as part of the
prevention of genocide and comprehensive reconciliation,
Recognizing the importance of preserving historic memory, without distortion,
relating to gross human rights violations and abuses and serious violations of international
humanitarian law through the conservation of archives, oral histories and other forms of
evidence relating to those violations,
Recognizing also that an important factor in the prevention of genocide is the
identification of the root causes of genocide, as well as early warning signs,
Expressing deep concern that genocide is typically preceded by widespread and
systematic human rights violations and abuses of civil and political rights, as well as of
economic, social and cultural rights, often linked to patterns of discrimination or exclusion
of protected groups, populations or individuals based on their ethnic, racial, national or
religious background,
Noting with concern that the crime of genocide, war crimes and crimes against
humanity are often preceded or accompanied by statements by political leaders and public
figures that express support for the affirmation of superiority of a race or an ethnic group,
dehumanize and demonize persons belonging to minorities, disseminating hostility and
1
2
E/CN.4/2006/91, A/HRC/5/7, A/HRC/12/19, A/HRC/15/33 and A/HRC/17/21.