Reducing the Risk of Mass Atrocities
Hearing Notice
Please join the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission for a hearing on local and national-level strategies to reduce the risk of mass atrocities around the world.
“Mass atrocities” are large-scale deliberate attacks against civilians, and include genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. After World War II, the international community vowed never again to stand by in the face of genocide and mass atrocities. But since then, these crimes have been committed in many countries and contexts, resulting in the suffering and deaths of hundreds of thousands of people. Millions more have been forced to flee, generating profound humanitarian, political, and national security consequences.
This hearing will explore different approaches employed by civil society actors to prevent atrocities by identifying and countering patterns of systematic violation of human rights, reducing the risk of the outbreak of violence or armed conflict or limiting its escalation, and improving social resilience. These approaches are process-oriented and prioritize engagement with key actors, education, strengthening institutional capacities, and changing incentives at the local and national level. Witnesses will draw on cases of success and failure to identify best practices and offer recommendations for policymakers.
This is the second in a series of hearings designed to reflect on the challenges to successful prevention and identify opportunities for Congress to improve U.S. government capacities to detect and respond to emerging humanitarian and human rights crises around the world.
This hearing will be open to Members of Congress, congressional staff, the interested public, and the media. The hearing will be livestreamed via the Commission website and will also be available for viewing on Channel 51 of the House Digital Channel service. For any questions, please contact Kimberly Stanton at 202-225-3599 or Kimberly.Stanton@mail.house.gov (for Mr. McGovern) or Jamie Staley at 202-226-1516 or Jamie.Staley@mail.house.gov (for Mr. Hultgren).
Hosted by:
| James P. McGovern Member of Congress Co-Chair, TLHRC |
Randy Hultgren
Member of Congress
Co-Chair, TLHRC
|
Opening Remarks
- Rep. James P. McGovern, Co-Chair, TLHRC
Written remarks - Rep. Randy Hultgren, Co-Chair, TLHRC
Written remarks - Rep. Hank Johnson, Member, TLHRC
Written remarks
Witnesses
- Bridget Moix, Senior U.S. Representative and Head of Advocacy, Peace Direct
Written testimony - Jack Mayerhofer, Chief of Staff, Auschwitz Institute for Peace and Reconciliation
Written testimony - Jai-Ayla Quest, Program Officer, Stanley Foundation
Written testimony - Vasu Mohan, International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES)
Written testimony - George Lopez, Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C., Professor Emeritus of Peace Studies, Kroc Institute for Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame
Written testimony
Submitted for the Record
- Representative Steve Cohen, Member, TLHRC, Statement Submitted for the Record
- The Auschwitz Institute for Peace and Reconciliation, Building Resilience to Genocide: Ten Practical Measures
- Samantha Capicotto and Rob Scharf, National Mechanisms for the Prevention of Atrocity Crimes, 2018
- The Auschwitz Institute for Peace and Reconciliation, Pursuing Institutionalization of the Prevention Agenda, 2017
- The Auschwitz Institute for Peace and Reconciliation, Integration into the State Architecture for Prevention, 2018
- Vasu Mohan and Catherine Barnes, IFES, Countering Hate Speech in Elections: Strategies for Electoral Management Bodies, January 2018
- The Stanley Foundation, Policy Brief: The Power of the Private Sector in Preventing Atrocities and Promoting the Responsibility to Protect, October 2016
- The Stanley Foundation, Policy Memo: The Power of the Private Sector in Preventing Atrocities and Promoting the Responsibility to Protect, November 11, 2016
- The Stanley Foundation, Preventing Mass Atrocities: A Road Map for Legislators, July 11, 2017
- Alex Bellamy, The Stanley Foundation, Reducing Risk, Strengthening Resilience: Toward the Structural Prevention of Atrocity Crimes, April 2016