A genocidal geopolitical conjuncture: con-textualising the destruction of the Unión Patriótica in Colombia (1980s-2010)

This thesis is a critique of the idea that genocide is a domestic process and that only some groups are worthy of protection against genocide. By looking at the destruction of the Unión Patriótica in the con-text of a genocidal geopolitical conjuncture, in which a polarised circulation of sympathy, antipathy, indifference and oblivion occurred, the thesis not only challenges the notion that genocides occur in locations detached from the international community, but also unveils how affect is mobilised through narratives which support and contest this fantasy. Thus, the thesis contends that geopolitical narratives can help solidify a genocidal conjuncture by allowing the amalgamation of various actors into a perpetrator bloc, but also disintegrate it by bringing about a fluid transnational network of resistance to genocide. In contrast to the two-dimensional geopolitical imagery that genocide takes place within the borders of the nation-state, it is argued, instead, that a fragmented geography, galvanised by a continuous victimisation-resistance spiral that links different actors, places, and dramas together, enables genocide to unfold. The thesis therefore proposes con-textualisation as a new method to research genocide as a geopolitical phenomenon.