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MEMBERS OF CONGRESS URGE PASSAGE OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION
armradio.am
04.05.2009 10:46
US Senators and Representatives called for increased vigilance and
activism against genocide and genocide denial in floor statements
commemorating the Armenian Genocide, reported the Armenian National
Committee of America (ANCA).
A major themes of their remarks were the need for passage of the
Armenian Genocide resolution (H.Res.252), which currently has 116
cosponsors, and the goal of ensuring that that the proper recognition
of past genocides be used to prevent future genocides.
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA): On this solemn anniversary, we remember
those who were lost in the Armenian genocide, while honoring the
survivors and their descendants who have done so much to make America
and the world a better place. I am personally grateful that so many of
those individuals have chosen to call California home. We also take
pause to acknowledge that such crimes are continuing today. There is
perhaps no more fitting example than the genocide that is raging in
the Darfur region of Sudan. Since 2002, the Sudanese Government has
attempted to exterminate the African Muslim population of Darfur with
horrific acts of brutality. Villages have been burned to the ground,
innocent women and children slaughtered by helicopter gunships,
and rape has been used as a tool of genocide. What happened to
the Armenians is genocide. What is happening today20in Darfur is
genocide, even though the Government of Sudan denies this. Genocide
is only possible when people avert their eyes. Any effort to deal
with genocide--in the past, present or future--must begin with the
truth. By acknowledging the truth of the Armenian genocide, we can
end the phony debates and strengthen our ability to stand up against
mass killing today.
Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI): The Armenian genocide demonstrated the evils
humans are capable of, and unfortunately, it was only the first of
several 20th century tragedies. As we reflect and recall this tragic
time, let us call for our own country to recognize the Armenian
genocide, just as my own State of Rhode Island has done, along with
many other States and governments. Menk panav chenk mornar--We will
never forget.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV): On April 24, 1915, the
Ottoman Empire began a campaign of forced deportation against the
Armenians. Around 2 million Armenian men, women, and children were
driven from their homeland, 1.5 million of whom were killed. Hundreds
of thousands were massacred outright, while others perished from
forced marches, deliberate starvation, and epidemics that ravaged
through concentration camps.
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN): On April 24, 1915, the then-Ottoman
Empire began the systematic execution of Armenians, an event now
known as the Armenian Genocide. While a large number of Armenians
were killed outright, man y others suffered and died of starvation
and diseases which spread through their concentration camps. By 1923,
the entire Armenian population previously inhabiting the landmass of
Asia Minor and West Armenia had been eliminated....Madam Speaker,
the United States serves as an example to the world of what can be
achieved when basic human rights are protected and nurtured. It is
in this role that we must recognize this methodic extermination of
over one million Armenians during World War I.
Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA): From 1915 to 1918, more than a million
Armenians died of starvation or disease on long marches, or were
massacred outright by Turkish forces. From 1918 to 1923, Armenians
continued to suffer at the hands of the Turkish military, which
eventually removed nearly all remaining Armenians from Turkey.... We
hope the day will soon come when it is not just the survivors who
honor the dead but also when those whose ancestors perpetrated the
horrors acknowledge their terrible responsibility and commemorate as
well the memory of genocide's victims.
Rep. Michael Capuano (D-MA): I understand that this topic evokes
painful memories and raises difficult issues of national identity for
persons of both Armenian and Turkish ancestry. Nonetheless, I believe
that we must call genocide by its proper name and acknowledge it when
it has occurred so that we may better learn to recognize and resist
its horrors in the future. That in cludes recognizing the policies of
the Ottoman Empire during World War I and its aftermath as genocidal.
Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA): This year, our Nation has the opportunity
to finally recognize the Armenian Genocide as such in the annual
commemoration from the White House. Year after year, we have seen the
same standard letter from the White House which offers sympathy and
apology for the "mass killings," yet refused to label these events
as genocide. However, President Obama made promises during his
campaign that he would right this wrong, and recognize the Armenian
Genocide. I am hopeful Madam Speaker, we finally escape from being
under Turkey's thumb on this issue. It is vital our Nation has a
foreign policy that accurately reflects history. In closing, Madam
Speaker, I will say again, genocide is not something that can simply
be swept under the rug and forgotten. We need leaders around the world
to not only recognize it, but to condemn it so the world can truly
say "Never Again." The United States cannot continue its policy of
denial regarding the Armenian Genocide, and I encourage passage of
H. Res. 252 to recognize the Armenian Genocide in our Nation.
Rep. Jerry Costello (D-IL): Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the
memory of the victims of the Armenian genocide and ask my colleagues to
support H. Res. 252, a bill to commemorate the Armenian genocide. Over
94 years ago this week, Ottoman Empire autho rities arrested some
250 Armenian community and political leaders in Constantinople. This
event signaled the beginning of the deliberate and systematic mass
murder of 1.5 million Armenian men, women, and children.
Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ): During World War I, the Turkish government
began an assault on the Armenian people by arresting and killing
religious, political, and intellectual leaders in Istanbul. Then,
groups of Armenian men, women, and children were rounded up and
forced to march through the desert. Along the way, the victims were
tortured, raped, and starved.... Hitler declared "Who, after all,
speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians ?" I, for one,
am still speaking about the annihilation of Armenians . I am also
speaking about the annihilation of Jews. I encourage my colleagues
to join me in speaking out against genocide.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY): Today we declare once again that the
Turkish and American governments must finally acknowledge what we have
long understood: that the unimaginable horror committed on Turkish soil
in the aftermath of World War I was an act of genocide. The tragic
events began on April 24, 1915, when more than 200 of Armenia's
religious, political and intellectual leaders were arrested in
Constantinople and killed. Ultimately, more than 1.5 million Armenians
were systematically murdered at the hands of the Young Turks, and more
than 500,000 more were exiled from their native land.... We simply
will not allow the planned elimination of an entire people to remain
in the shadows of history. The Armenian Genocide must be acknowledged,
studied, and never, ever allowed to happen again.
Rep Ed Markey (D-MA): Madam Speaker, I rise to commemorate the
94th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, and to call, once again,
for the immediate passage of the Affirmation of the United States
Record on the Armenian Genocide Resolution.... While the target of
this genocide was the Armenian people, it was indeed a crime against
all of humanity.... Madam Speaker, I call upon this House once again
to pass H. Res. 252, the Affirmation of the United States Record on
the Armenian Genocide Resolution.
Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ): We have stood by for too long as the
Turkish government manipulates the issue of the Armenian Genocide. We
have watched them pay millions of dollars to Turkish lobbyists to
mislead and even threaten members of Congress. We have watched the
Turkish government bring scholars and writers to court for insulting
Turkishness just for writing the words Armenian Genocide. And two years
ago we watched in profound disbelief when Hrant Dink was assassinated
in Istanbul. It is enough. Armenian Genocide Recognition is not only
important for Armenians, it is important for us as Americans. If
we are going to live up to the standards we set for ourselves and
continue to lead the world in affirming human rights everywhere,
we need to stand up and recognize the Armenian Genocide.
Rep. Gary Peters (D-MI): On April 24, 1915, the Ottoman Empire arrested
Armenian intellectuals and community leaders in Constantinople,
marking the beginning of an eight year campaign against Armenian
civilians. By the genocide's end in 1923, roughly one and a half
million unarmed men, women and children were rounded up, stripped of
all their possessions and means of support, and sent on death marches
or to concentration camps.
Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD): We welcome steps today by the governments
of Turkey and Armenia --as the official inheritors of these fateful
policies of the Ottoman government--to normalize relations and begin
working through this history. Indeed, reconciliation of painful
history is an important means of preventing future tragedies of
this scope. We believe this process will be strengthened if the
President--in his annual message commemorating the April 24, 1915
declaration by Allied Powers--to accurately characterize the mindless
massacre of Armenians as genocide and to recall the proud record of
U.S. opposition to this persecution.
Rep. Tim Walz (D-MN): I remain committed to the public recognition of
the fact of the Armenian genocide. It is the only way to make sure we
are forever vigilant to prevent genocide in the future. I have hope,
that we can all move forward, not in an exercise in collective guilt,
but i n the simple recognition of what happened, that a genocide
was perpetrated upon the Armenian people, and that such a thing,
quite simply, never should have happened and must never happen again.
Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA): Madam Speaker, today marks the 94th
Anniversary of the beginning of the Armenian genocide. This devastating
event is a reminder that we cannot allow for such atrocities to happen
again. It is unacceptable to witness thousands of innocent victims
suffer and die without taking any action. Ninety-four years ago,
the Ottoman Turks began their attempts to exterminate the Armenian
people. From 1915 until 1923, 1.5 million Armenians were tortured and
killed. Men were separated from their families and murdered; women and
children were forced to march across the Syrian desert without water,
food, or possessions; many died of hunger or thirst or were killed
when they lagged behind during the forced marches into the desert.
These acts of intolerance cannot be termed anything but genocide.
Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA): The Armenian genocide, in which 1.5
million perished, is widely recognized as the 20th century's first
genocide. Raphael Lemkin, the Jewish legal scholar who coined
the word genocide and tirelessly advocated for international law
defining it and preventing it, was driven largely by what happened
to the Armenians. Adolph Hitler, in describing his murderous plans
and seeking to silence those with reservations, famously sa id, "Who,
after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?" There
is power in speaking the truth, even about atrocities that occurred
nearly a century ago, so that other men with evil aims might not be
empowered by our silence.
armradio.am
04.05.2009 10:46
US Senators and Representatives called for increased vigilance and
activism against genocide and genocide denial in floor statements
commemorating the Armenian Genocide, reported the Armenian National
Committee of America (ANCA).
A major themes of their remarks were the need for passage of the
Armenian Genocide resolution (H.Res.252), which currently has 116
cosponsors, and the goal of ensuring that that the proper recognition
of past genocides be used to prevent future genocides.
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA): On this solemn anniversary, we remember
those who were lost in the Armenian genocide, while honoring the
survivors and their descendants who have done so much to make America
and the world a better place. I am personally grateful that so many of
those individuals have chosen to call California home. We also take
pause to acknowledge that such crimes are continuing today. There is
perhaps no more fitting example than the genocide that is raging in
the Darfur region of Sudan. Since 2002, the Sudanese Government has
attempted to exterminate the African Muslim population of Darfur with
horrific acts of brutality. Villages have been burned to the ground,
innocent women and children slaughtered by helicopter gunships,
and rape has been used as a tool of genocide. What happened to
the Armenians is genocide. What is happening today20in Darfur is
genocide, even though the Government of Sudan denies this. Genocide
is only possible when people avert their eyes. Any effort to deal
with genocide--in the past, present or future--must begin with the
truth. By acknowledging the truth of the Armenian genocide, we can
end the phony debates and strengthen our ability to stand up against
mass killing today.
Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI): The Armenian genocide demonstrated the evils
humans are capable of, and unfortunately, it was only the first of
several 20th century tragedies. As we reflect and recall this tragic
time, let us call for our own country to recognize the Armenian
genocide, just as my own State of Rhode Island has done, along with
many other States and governments. Menk panav chenk mornar--We will
never forget.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV): On April 24, 1915, the
Ottoman Empire began a campaign of forced deportation against the
Armenians. Around 2 million Armenian men, women, and children were
driven from their homeland, 1.5 million of whom were killed. Hundreds
of thousands were massacred outright, while others perished from
forced marches, deliberate starvation, and epidemics that ravaged
through concentration camps.
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN): On April 24, 1915, the then-Ottoman
Empire began the systematic execution of Armenians, an event now
known as the Armenian Genocide. While a large number of Armenians
were killed outright, man y others suffered and died of starvation
and diseases which spread through their concentration camps. By 1923,
the entire Armenian population previously inhabiting the landmass of
Asia Minor and West Armenia had been eliminated....Madam Speaker,
the United States serves as an example to the world of what can be
achieved when basic human rights are protected and nurtured. It is
in this role that we must recognize this methodic extermination of
over one million Armenians during World War I.
Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA): From 1915 to 1918, more than a million
Armenians died of starvation or disease on long marches, or were
massacred outright by Turkish forces. From 1918 to 1923, Armenians
continued to suffer at the hands of the Turkish military, which
eventually removed nearly all remaining Armenians from Turkey.... We
hope the day will soon come when it is not just the survivors who
honor the dead but also when those whose ancestors perpetrated the
horrors acknowledge their terrible responsibility and commemorate as
well the memory of genocide's victims.
Rep. Michael Capuano (D-MA): I understand that this topic evokes
painful memories and raises difficult issues of national identity for
persons of both Armenian and Turkish ancestry. Nonetheless, I believe
that we must call genocide by its proper name and acknowledge it when
it has occurred so that we may better learn to recognize and resist
its horrors in the future. That in cludes recognizing the policies of
the Ottoman Empire during World War I and its aftermath as genocidal.
Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA): This year, our Nation has the opportunity
to finally recognize the Armenian Genocide as such in the annual
commemoration from the White House. Year after year, we have seen the
same standard letter from the White House which offers sympathy and
apology for the "mass killings," yet refused to label these events
as genocide. However, President Obama made promises during his
campaign that he would right this wrong, and recognize the Armenian
Genocide. I am hopeful Madam Speaker, we finally escape from being
under Turkey's thumb on this issue. It is vital our Nation has a
foreign policy that accurately reflects history. In closing, Madam
Speaker, I will say again, genocide is not something that can simply
be swept under the rug and forgotten. We need leaders around the world
to not only recognize it, but to condemn it so the world can truly
say "Never Again." The United States cannot continue its policy of
denial regarding the Armenian Genocide, and I encourage passage of
H. Res. 252 to recognize the Armenian Genocide in our Nation.
Rep. Jerry Costello (D-IL): Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the
memory of the victims of the Armenian genocide and ask my colleagues to
support H. Res. 252, a bill to commemorate the Armenian genocide. Over
94 years ago this week, Ottoman Empire autho rities arrested some
250 Armenian community and political leaders in Constantinople. This
event signaled the beginning of the deliberate and systematic mass
murder of 1.5 million Armenian men, women, and children.
Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ): During World War I, the Turkish government
began an assault on the Armenian people by arresting and killing
religious, political, and intellectual leaders in Istanbul. Then,
groups of Armenian men, women, and children were rounded up and
forced to march through the desert. Along the way, the victims were
tortured, raped, and starved.... Hitler declared "Who, after all,
speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians ?" I, for one,
am still speaking about the annihilation of Armenians . I am also
speaking about the annihilation of Jews. I encourage my colleagues
to join me in speaking out against genocide.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY): Today we declare once again that the
Turkish and American governments must finally acknowledge what we have
long understood: that the unimaginable horror committed on Turkish soil
in the aftermath of World War I was an act of genocide. The tragic
events began on April 24, 1915, when more than 200 of Armenia's
religious, political and intellectual leaders were arrested in
Constantinople and killed. Ultimately, more than 1.5 million Armenians
were systematically murdered at the hands of the Young Turks, and more
than 500,000 more were exiled from their native land.... We simply
will not allow the planned elimination of an entire people to remain
in the shadows of history. The Armenian Genocide must be acknowledged,
studied, and never, ever allowed to happen again.
Rep Ed Markey (D-MA): Madam Speaker, I rise to commemorate the
94th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, and to call, once again,
for the immediate passage of the Affirmation of the United States
Record on the Armenian Genocide Resolution.... While the target of
this genocide was the Armenian people, it was indeed a crime against
all of humanity.... Madam Speaker, I call upon this House once again
to pass H. Res. 252, the Affirmation of the United States Record on
the Armenian Genocide Resolution.
Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ): We have stood by for too long as the
Turkish government manipulates the issue of the Armenian Genocide. We
have watched them pay millions of dollars to Turkish lobbyists to
mislead and even threaten members of Congress. We have watched the
Turkish government bring scholars and writers to court for insulting
Turkishness just for writing the words Armenian Genocide. And two years
ago we watched in profound disbelief when Hrant Dink was assassinated
in Istanbul. It is enough. Armenian Genocide Recognition is not only
important for Armenians, it is important for us as Americans. If
we are going to live up to the standards we set for ourselves and
continue to lead the world in affirming human rights everywhere,
we need to stand up and recognize the Armenian Genocide.
Rep. Gary Peters (D-MI): On April 24, 1915, the Ottoman Empire arrested
Armenian intellectuals and community leaders in Constantinople,
marking the beginning of an eight year campaign against Armenian
civilians. By the genocide's end in 1923, roughly one and a half
million unarmed men, women and children were rounded up, stripped of
all their possessions and means of support, and sent on death marches
or to concentration camps.
Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD): We welcome steps today by the governments
of Turkey and Armenia --as the official inheritors of these fateful
policies of the Ottoman government--to normalize relations and begin
working through this history. Indeed, reconciliation of painful
history is an important means of preventing future tragedies of
this scope. We believe this process will be strengthened if the
President--in his annual message commemorating the April 24, 1915
declaration by Allied Powers--to accurately characterize the mindless
massacre of Armenians as genocide and to recall the proud record of
U.S. opposition to this persecution.
Rep. Tim Walz (D-MN): I remain committed to the public recognition of
the fact of the Armenian genocide. It is the only way to make sure we
are forever vigilant to prevent genocide in the future. I have hope,
that we can all move forward, not in an exercise in collective guilt,
but i n the simple recognition of what happened, that a genocide
was perpetrated upon the Armenian people, and that such a thing,
quite simply, never should have happened and must never happen again.
Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA): Madam Speaker, today marks the 94th
Anniversary of the beginning of the Armenian genocide. This devastating
event is a reminder that we cannot allow for such atrocities to happen
again. It is unacceptable to witness thousands of innocent victims
suffer and die without taking any action. Ninety-four years ago,
the Ottoman Turks began their attempts to exterminate the Armenian
people. From 1915 until 1923, 1.5 million Armenians were tortured and
killed. Men were separated from their families and murdered; women and
children were forced to march across the Syrian desert without water,
food, or possessions; many died of hunger or thirst or were killed
when they lagged behind during the forced marches into the desert.
These acts of intolerance cannot be termed anything but genocide.
Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA): The Armenian genocide, in which 1.5
million perished, is widely recognized as the 20th century's first
genocide. Raphael Lemkin, the Jewish legal scholar who coined
the word genocide and tirelessly advocated for international law
defining it and preventing it, was driven largely by what happened
to the Armenians. Adolph Hitler, in describing his murderous plans
and seeking to silence those with reservations, famously sa id, "Who,
after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?" There
is power in speaking the truth, even about atrocities that occurred
nearly a century ago, so that other men with evil aims might not be
empowered by our silence.