Given the recent topic
Let’s throw the desperate “Edelgard doesn’t commit Genocide, ya’ll just imbeciles mean” shallow take into the trash with facts.
Time to bring the UN for an explicit definition of genocide!
(You know, because facts should be backed up!)
For the purpose of this Statute, “genocide” means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:
(a) Killing members of the group;
(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;
(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;
(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.
(Taken from the Rome Statue of International Criminal Law, Article Six, Genocide)
In bold are the actions Edelgard and her allies explicitly make towards the Nabateans. Of which only five exist in the world after the previous genocide of Zanado.
Killing members of the group: Self explanatory. With the explicit mention that Edelgard will kill Flayn and Seteth if faced with them in CF, and in any other routes. She, as leader of the army and emperor of a country, will explicitly and personally kill two of the remaining five members of a race if confronted.
She will not kill the other remaining three because, in two cases she never faces against them (one of the encounters is even deliberately hidden from her by the people who made the encounter); and in the case of the third one three times out of four…
Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group: Three out of four times Rhea is imprisoned in Enbarr where she undergoes torture the severity of which is unknown. But it is severe enough for her to have a pitiful state when rescued. It should be noted that Edelgard’s allies are well known for experimenting with humans, and using Nabatean blood for resources (as explicitly shown with Flayn previously, and with the existence of the 10 [or rather, 11] Heroes crests and relics). Therefore it is not out of the realm of possibility that Rhea as a POW endured such terrible tortures and harvesting.
Of course this also brings us to Flayn, who was captured, tortured and her blood harvested by Edelgard’s allies with the aid of one of her generals she lent them. Flayn was bodily harmed, and still has psychological trauma from the event even five years after the kidnapping.
Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part: War. Invading and Conquering Garreg Mach, which is the place three of them lived and was the safest for them. Conquering and deliberately weakening (food shortages, high taxes, assignation attempts) the nations that would aid them / offer them a safe haven. Yes, conquering the nations may be part of her plan, but her statements that “Children of the Goddess” (which is literal as they are children, or grandchildren in one case, of Sothis, and again worth mentioning only five of them still exists) should not live make it pretty clear that could also be part of her intent.
And with intent, I shall now cite the first part of the element of the Crime (i.e. Genocide) as stated by the Article II of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, and explained by the United Nations office on Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (From now on addressed as The Office) as the mental element of the Crime.
In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group as such
(Taken from the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, Article II)
In Italics is the statement The Office has noted to be the mental element of the crime. In bold the category Nabateans (again, only five of them are left when the game starts) are.
You might notice, the cited text is the exact same the Rome Statute uses as preamble for the actions presented as genocide in Article 6. That is because the Rome Statute adopted Article II exactly as it was.
There is no indication that Edelgard is aware of the existence of two more Nabateans (or as she calls them “Children of the Goddess”), so her operations are only centered on three: Rhea, Seteth, and Flayn.
Her treatment of Rhea is explicit. It’s worth mentioning again that Flayn’s Kidnapping and Torture was done by her allies (of which she never abandons until she dies/they have lived up their usefulness), in coordination with one of her generals she lent them, and she will personally kidnap her again if the rescue party takes too long.
Now The Office does take note that “To constitute genocide, there must be a proven intent on the part of perpetrators to physically destroy a national, ethnical, racial or religious group.” So even if people could argue Edelgard’s intent with the Nabateans isn’t enough for it to be declared genocide, her allies have proven time and again, with The notorious genocide in their record, that their intent is to end the Nabateans. She aids them by making it possible for them to obtain one for their experiments (Flayn) and possibly provides them with another (Rhea), while readily profiting from their findings (crest beasts, even before CF, and Amyr). She does not break their alliance until she dies, or they have outlived their usefulness to her.
That, is intent.
The Office also states that “ In addition, case law has associated intent with the existence of a State or organizational plan or policy, even if the definition of genocide in international law does not include that element.“. Edelgard’s war declaration makes it clear she will upend the church of Seiros (religious group persecution now has a go, and again, worth mentioning that it and Garreg mach are places where three out of the five Nabateans left are safe.), that the church of Seiros has “Broken the Empire into Kingdom and that into the Alliance to control them better” of which there is proof of the entire opposite, and that “those corrupt hypocrites can’t lead to true peace”.
The policy on Nabateans is pretty clear, and three out of four routes explicitly debunk the theory that Edelgard only meant Rhea. After all, Rhea is her POW in those three, but the war still continues, as does her alliance with the Agarthans.
She will not accept the existence of either Seteth and Flayn in Fodland (the continent they were born), attributing to them ruling power when it is shown to be undeniably false.
The office continues with the following “Importantly, the victims of genocide are deliberately targeted - not randomly – because of their real or perceived membership of one of the four groups protected under the Convention (which excludes political groups, for example).“
Again, if this was only because of Rhea, it would not be genocide (at least not based on race, religious is still up for grabs). But Flayn was kidnapped and harvested with the aggravate that Edelgard herself will kidnap her again if the rescue team is late. Moreover, three out of four times Rhea is already her POW, she has no ways of communicating with anyone, and Edelgard’s war still continues. Therefore it is clear, she is not after the Papal position.
This goes in line with The Office’s explanation that “the target of destruction must be the group, as such, and not its members as individuals.”. She knows only of three, and she will kill (or worse) those three.
The Office finishes by stating that “Genocide can also be committed against only a part of the group, as long as that part is identifiable (including within a geographically limited area) and “substantial.”
“Geographically limited Area” bears no further explanation. It’s the entirety of Fodlan, the place they were born. “As long as that part is identifiable and “substantial”” Green hair, pointy ears, and she is well aware of their origins.
In summary, Edelgard is the emperor of a country. She is in a position of power and she is the leader/general/ultimate commander of the war she declared. She makes the decision, or, as a leader, is ultimately responsible for them.
She will kill Seteth, Flayn and Rhea when confronted -though in the last case she could also take her as a POW with the possibility of her allies harvesting and torturing her and Edelgard readily profiting from their findings-, even addressing them by their race/origins (or calling them beasts) before killing them.
This is something that is well known to her allies as the paralogue of Linhart and Leonie excludes Edelgard and Hubert (who would readily tell Edelgard, if not do the job himself).
She is allied with the people who committed the first genocide against the Nabateans, and will not disband her alliance even after what happened with Flayn. In fact, she will kidnap her again so the harvesting and torture can continue if given the chance.
In conclusion, she commits genocide.
