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Schwarzenegger Proclaims April 22 - 29, 2007 as"Days of Remembrance"

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  • Schwarzenegger Proclaims April 22 - 29, 2007 as"Days of Remembrance"

    Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region
    104 North Belmont Street, Suite 200
    Glendale, California 91206
    Phone: 818.500.1918
    Fax: 818.246.7353
    E-mail: [email protected]
    Web: www.anca.org


    PRESS RELEASE
    April 12, 2007
    Contact: Haig Hovsepian
    Tel: (818) 500-1918

    Governor Schwarzenegger Proclaims April 22 - 29, 2007 as
    "Days of Remembrance"
    to Commemorate Armenian Genocide



    Los Angeles, CA - The State of California's largest Armenian American
    public affairs organization, the Armenian National Committee of America
    - Western Region (ANCA-WR), is praising a proclamation concerning the
    Armenian Genocide released by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on April 6,
    2007. The document specifically addresses the continued denial of the
    Armenian Genocide which is so deeply offensive to the over 500,000
    Armenian Americans who live in the Golden State.

    "We are proud to see Governor Schwarzenegger exercise moral leadership
    on the Armenian Genocide," commented ANCA-WR Executive Director Andrew
    Kzirian. "His statement is appreciated by Armenian Americans in
    California and all people of conscience who believe that the denial of
    genocide is morally abhorrent. The ANCA-WR will be sharing the
    Governor's proclamation with all 53 Members of California's
    Congressional Delegation in the hope that they will pass, without delay,
    the Armenian Genocide resolution pending in the House Foreign Affairs
    Committee," added Kzirian.

    The statement reads in part, "Documented as the first instance of
    genocide in the twentieth century, the Armenian Genocide remains
    unacknowledged to this day. I strongly echo the sentiments that all
    nations must examine their own painful histories, as the denial of
    genocide further wounds a nation's ability to heal. It is our
    responsibility to recognize the brutal slayings of so many innocents
    [Armenians], remembering their suffering and vowing to help prevent
    future genocides." The proclamation goes on to declare the week of
    April 22 through April 29, 2007 as "Days of Remembrance of the Armenian
    Genocide."

    Governor Schwarzenegger's proclamation was issued in the midst of a
    campaign by the Turkish Government to defeat a resolution (H.Res.106)
    pending in the U.S. Congress that would mark the slaughter of 1.5
    million Christians as the first genocide of the 20th century. Over 48
    of the State of California's 53 Members of Congress have cosponsored the
    Armenian Genocide resolution. San Francisco - Bay Area Congressman Tom
    Lantos (D-CA), who serves as Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs
    Committee and is himself a Holocaust survivor, has not indicated whether
    he is supporting the legislation or if he will schedule a vote on the
    bill in his committee. Currently, nearly 200 Members of Congress from
    over 35 states have cosponsored the Armenian Genocide resolution.

    This is the tenth proclamation issued by the Office of the Governor of
    California in the past eleven years, and supplements the sixteen
    proclamations by the California Assembly and Senate dating back to 1991.
    Governor Schwarzenegger has followed in the footsteps of predecessor
    Governor Grey Davis in issuing proclamations recognizing and calling for
    remembrance of the Armenian Genocide.

    The full text of the proclamation is included below.

    The Armenian National Committee of America is the largest and most
    influential Armenian American grassroots political organization. Working
    in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters
    throughout the United States and affiliated organizations around the
    world, the ANCA actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American
    community on a broad range of issues.

    ###


    Photo Caption: Governor of the State of California, Arnold
    Schwarzenegger (R-CA).

    Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger

    Proclamation

    Between the years 1915 and 1923, during the chaos of World War I, over
    one million Armenian men, women and children living within the Ottoman
    Empire's borders were killed; forcing hundreds of thousands of Armenians
    to flee to foreign countries after being stripped of their possessions,
    their identities and their homeland.

    Scores fled to the United States, and California was fortunate to become
    home to one of the largest populations of Armenians outside the Republic
    of Armenia. Many of California's Armenian-American families are the
    descendants of these courageous genocide survivors, whose hope for a
    life independent [of] war and violence was realized on our soil. Like
    their family members before them, the Armenian-American community
    bravely flourished and contributed much to our state and nation.

    Documented as the first instance of genocide in the twentieth century,
    the Armenian Genocide remains unacknowledged to this day. I strongly
    echo the sentiments that all nations must examine their own painful
    histories, as the denial of genocide further wounds a nation's ability
    to heal. Though over ninety years have passed since these mass killings
    took place, present day atrocities resonate throughout the world. It is
    our responsibility to recognize the brutal slayings of so many
    innocents, remembering their suffering and vowing to help prevent future
    genocides.

    I join California's Armenian-American communities and all Armenians
    worldwide in remembering those who were killed and persecuted during the
    Armenian Genocide, and urge people throughout the world to never forget
    these horrific crimes against humanity.

    NOW, THEREFORE, I, ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, Governor of the State of
    California, do hereby proclaim the week of April 22nd - April 29th, 2007
    as "Days of Remembrance of the Armenian Genocide."

    IN WITNESS WHEREOF I have here unto set my hand and caused the Great
    Seal of the State of California to be affixed to this 6th day of April
    2007.

    Arnold Schwarzenegger
    GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA

    From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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