Tweet
US SENATE COMMITTEE DELAYS VOTE ON DINK RESOLUTION
EmÝne Kart Ankara
Today's Zaman, Turkey
March 7 2007
A decision by the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on Tuesday
to delay a planned vote on a resolution condemning the murder of
Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink and calling on Turkey to abolish
a penal code article widely considered to be a barrier standing in the
way of freedom of expression has led to disappointment in the Armenian
diaspora while pleasing Ankara in that US lawmakers apparently have
taken Turkey's concerns into consideration.
"We are troubled that Senator Lugar -- apparently acting at the
request of the administration -- has delayed the US Senate's tribute
to the life and memory of Hrant Dink," said Aram Hamparian, executive
director of the influential US-based Armenian lobbying organization
the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), was quoted as
saying in reference to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations'
ranking member, Richard G. Lugar. "We look forward to the panel, at
the next opportunity, rejecting any efforts to block or water down
this measure and passing it in the form it was introduced."
On Tuesday, when the committee gathered at a "business meeting," Lugar
objected to the resolution text and wanted the "Armenian genocide"
expression to be taken out of the resolution.
The non-binding resolution, drafted by Democrat Senator Joe Biden,
chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations, condemns the murder
of Dink and calls for abolishment of the infamous Article 301 under
which Dink was tried and handed a six-month suspended sentence for
"insulting Turkishness" and also calls on Turkey to establish full
political, diplomatic and economic relations with neighboring Armenia.
"Apparently the reason for the delay is a disagreement among US
lawmakers, as some of them expressed their uneasiness over certain
expressions used in the resolution," diplomatic sources on Wednesday
told Today's Zaman, avoiding comment on whether the US lawmakers were
upset by the "genocide" expression.
"This is a non-binding resolution, and what matters for us is the US
administration's stance in regard to Armenian allegations. So far,
the US administration hasn't bowed to Armenian pressure to officially
recognize the allegations," the same diplomatic sources said.
Senator Lugar and Senator Biden are expected to draw up a new joint
text for the same resolution before the committee gathers for the next
meeting, the Anatolia news agency reported from Washington yesterday.
Meanwhile, officials at the Turkish Embassy in Washington have been
constantly informing US lawmakers over "inappropriate expressions"
and facts in the resolution.
--Boundary_(ID_96dTNv8Ekrq3zA/UQBjWpg )--
EmÝne Kart Ankara
Today's Zaman, Turkey
March 7 2007
A decision by the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on Tuesday
to delay a planned vote on a resolution condemning the murder of
Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink and calling on Turkey to abolish
a penal code article widely considered to be a barrier standing in the
way of freedom of expression has led to disappointment in the Armenian
diaspora while pleasing Ankara in that US lawmakers apparently have
taken Turkey's concerns into consideration.
"We are troubled that Senator Lugar -- apparently acting at the
request of the administration -- has delayed the US Senate's tribute
to the life and memory of Hrant Dink," said Aram Hamparian, executive
director of the influential US-based Armenian lobbying organization
the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA), was quoted as
saying in reference to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations'
ranking member, Richard G. Lugar. "We look forward to the panel, at
the next opportunity, rejecting any efforts to block or water down
this measure and passing it in the form it was introduced."
On Tuesday, when the committee gathered at a "business meeting," Lugar
objected to the resolution text and wanted the "Armenian genocide"
expression to be taken out of the resolution.
The non-binding resolution, drafted by Democrat Senator Joe Biden,
chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations, condemns the murder
of Dink and calls for abolishment of the infamous Article 301 under
which Dink was tried and handed a six-month suspended sentence for
"insulting Turkishness" and also calls on Turkey to establish full
political, diplomatic and economic relations with neighboring Armenia.
"Apparently the reason for the delay is a disagreement among US
lawmakers, as some of them expressed their uneasiness over certain
expressions used in the resolution," diplomatic sources on Wednesday
told Today's Zaman, avoiding comment on whether the US lawmakers were
upset by the "genocide" expression.
"This is a non-binding resolution, and what matters for us is the US
administration's stance in regard to Armenian allegations. So far,
the US administration hasn't bowed to Armenian pressure to officially
recognize the allegations," the same diplomatic sources said.
Senator Lugar and Senator Biden are expected to draw up a new joint
text for the same resolution before the committee gathers for the next
meeting, the Anatolia news agency reported from Washington yesterday.
Meanwhile, officials at the Turkish Embassy in Washington have been
constantly informing US lawmakers over "inappropriate expressions"
and facts in the resolution.
--Boundary_(ID_96dTNv8Ekrq3zA/UQBjWpg )--