Memoria [EN] No. 23 (08/2019) | Page 37

What seem to be the beginnings of the process of mass murder?

Professor Kamiński stressed the dangers of hatred, and considered this from a legal perspective. He commented that whilst we have the term ‘hate speech’, the law deals more with terms like ‘freedom of speech’. It can be challenging to define exactly where hatred starts in such cases, and when speech can become dangerous. Professor Kamiński also highlighted the law’s role in ensuring that crimes such as the Holocaust do not happen again, through elements such as international tribunals, but expressed concern that many countries still do not accept the jurisdiction of international courts.

Father Desbois discussed his recent work in Iraq, where he has been working with Yazidi victims of ISIS. Many of the perpetrators, he said, are not native to the Middle East, but come from all over the world. Why would a young Frenchman, for instance, travel to Syria to fight, knowing he will die? Father Desbois believes that it is a result of the ideology of being “Superman”, “a real James Bond”. These young people buy into an ideology that allows them to feel powerful and recognised. In contrast to Professor Kamiński, Desbois does not believe hatred is the key: rather, “it’s about being out of humanity.” Once the idea of being “above humanity” has permeated a person, he added, they will do all sorts of things. The same logic can be applied to perpetrators of the Holocaust.