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ANCA: Rep. Pallone Condemns Amb. Evans Firing

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  • ANCA: Rep. Pallone Condemns Amb. Evans Firing

    Armenian National Committee of America
    1711 N Street NW
    Washington, DC 20036
    Tel: (202) 775-1918
    Fax: (202) 775-5648
    E-mail: [email protected]
    Internet: www.anca.org

    PRESS RELEASE
    May 26, 2006
    Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
    Tel: (202) 775-1918

    REP. PALLONE CONDEMNS AMB. EVANS FIRING

    -- Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chairman
    Presses for Answers from the State Department

    -- "Amb. Evans should be praised, not dismissed,
    for rejecting a 'gag-rule' imposed by the Turkish
    Government on the discussion of the Armenian
    Genocide by America's leaders at home and
    diplomats abroad." -- ANCA WebFax to Congress

    WASHINGTON, DC - The controversy surrounded the firing of U.S.
    Ambassador to Armenia John Marshall Evans continued to grow this
    week with a powerful statement by the Co-Chairman of the Armenian
    Caucus, calls for Congressional hearings, and a series of as yet
    unanswered inquiries from the national media during the State
    Department's daily press briefing, reported the Armenian National
    Committee of America (ANCA).

    In a May 25th statement on the House floor, Congressman Frank
    Pallone (D-NJ) forcefully condemned the Administration for forcing
    Amb. Evans to vacate his post for publicly affirming the Armenian
    Genocide. He voiced his "fear that the Government of Turkey may
    have played a role in this unfortunate event. I strongly believe
    they have expressed concern to the White House over Evans' remarks
    last year. In fact, immediately following his remarks, Evan issued
    a "correction," all too seemingly at the behest of the
    Administration. We must not allow a third party to interfere in
    U.S. diplomacy and refrain from declaring the truth in order to
    promote relations with Turkey."

    Congressman Pallone noted that he has yet to receive an explanation
    from the State Department, despite having written a letter to the
    Secretary more than two months ago requesting a thorough
    description of the reasons behind the Ambassador's recall.
    Commenting on similar unanswered letters and questions posed during
    Congressional hearings regarding this controversy, he noted that,
    "now, the White House has made an 'official' announcement but still
    has not given an explanation." He closed by expressing his "hope
    that the newly-appointed U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, Richard
    Hoagland, will not play the word games of the White House, and
    comply with Turkey's campaign of genocidal denial."

    The White House made the recall of Amb. Evans official this week
    with the public announcement of his replacement, Richard Hoagland.

    As he has repeated over the past several months, the State
    Department spokesperson, Sean McCormack, yesterday, again avoided
    answering a direct question about the reasons for Amb. Evans'
    recall. In response to persistent questioning, he limited his
    remarks to generically praising Amb. Evans' service, noting his
    replacement, and repeating the stock-phrase that he and other
    senior Administration officials "serve at the pleasure of the
    President."

    The ANCA has called for Congressional hearings to investigate the
    firing of Ambassador Evans. Using the ANCA website, activists can
    send their legislators a free ANCA WebFax asking them to call for
    hearings of both the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the
    House International Relations Committee. These letters call for a
    full hearing, featuring testimony from all the key figures involved
    in this situation, as well as a thorough examination of the role of
    the Turkish Government in exporting its suppression of speech to
    the United States.

    The ANCA WebFaxes state, in part, that, "Amb. Evans is, in effect,
    being punished for honoring his President's pledge to properly
    recognize the Armenian Genocide - a promise that George W. Bush
    made on the campaign trail in February of 2000 but abandoned once
    in the White House. Amb. Evans should be praised, not dismissed,
    for rejecting "gag-rules" imposed by the Turkish Government on the
    discussion of the Armenian Genocide by America's leaders at home
    and diplomats abroad." The letters close by expressing outrage
    that the "Administration has lacked the courage to speak honestly -
    either to Congress or the American people - about its reasons for
    firing Ambassador Evans. Hopefully, these hearings will provide
    the transparency that we, as citizens, have the right to expect of
    our government."

    Earlier this week, sixty Members of Congress, led by Rep. Ed Markey
    (D-MA), sent a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice asking
    for clarification of the reasons behind Amb. Evans' recall. Prior
    to this letter, Rep. Pallone, Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Rep. Grace
    Napolitano (D-CA) each independently called on the State Department
    to explain reports that Amb. Evans was being recalled because of
    his speech on the Armenian Genocide.They have yet to receive any
    response to their inquiries.

    The Los Angeles Times, in a strongly worded March 22nd editorial,
    made direct reference to Amb. Evans' impending dismissal, calling
    on the Turkish Government and U.S. State Department to end their
    policies of Armenian Genocide denial.

    Following his statements last February, Amb. Evans was forced to
    issue a clarification that his references to the Armenian Genocide
    were his personal views and did not represent a change in US
    policy. He subsequently issued a correction to this statement,
    replacing a reference to the genocide with the word "tragedy." The
    American Foreign Service Association, which had planned to honor
    Amb. Evans with the "Christian A. Herter Award," recognizing
    creative thinking and intellectual courage within the Foreign
    Service, reportedly rescinded the award following pressure from the
    State Department a few days before Turkish Prime Minister Recep
    Tayyip Erdogan traveled to Washington, DC to meet with President
    Bush.

    The full text of Congressman Pallone's remarks are provided below.

    #####

    Text of Congressman Frank Pallone's (D-NJ) remarks
    U.S. House of Representatives
    May 25, 2006

    "Mr. Speaker, I rise today because the White House has finally made
    an announcement of what many of us already knew: Ambassador John
    Evans is officially being replaced as United States Ambassador to
    Armenia.

    "Ambassador Evans has given exemplary service to his country and
    was a well-respected ambassador in a region of strategic importance
    to the United States. However, as it turns out, Evans was forced
    to vacate his post for publicly affirming the Armenian Genocide.

    "Reports highly suggest that because Evans declared that "the
    Armenian Genocide was the first genocide of the twentieth century"
    he is being unjustly penalized for speaking the truth. However, by
    employing the proper term last year, the Ambassador was only
    building on previous statements by our leaders in government, as
    well as the repeated declarations of numerous world-renowned
    scholars. Ambassador Evans did nothing more than succinctly repeat
    the conclusions enunciated by many before him.

    "Mr. Speaker, it is my fear that the Government of Turkey may have
    played a role in this unfortunate event. I strongly believe they
    have expressed concern to the White House over Evans' remarks last
    year. In fact, immediately following his remarks, Evan issued a
    "correction," all too seemingly at the behest of the
    Administration. We must not allow a third party to interfere in US
    diplomacy and refrain from declaring the truth in order to promote
    relations with Turkey.

    "To this day, the Republic of Turkey refuses to acknowledge the
    fact that this massive crime against humanity took place under its
    control, in the name of Turkish nationalism. Unfortunately, some
    90 years later, the US State Department continues to support
    Turkey's denials despite all evidence to the contrary.

    "It is unacceptable for this Administration to penalize Evans for
    his comments. What he did was courageous and should be viewed as
    such, not punished. Ambassador Evans simply articulated the same
    message as that of the Administration; however, the only difference
    was his assigning a word to define the actions taken against
    Armenians.

    "Ambassador Evans is in fact an expert on the subject. He has
    studied the history of Armenia, and based on his substantial
    studies, he was willing to go on the record and define the
    systematic extermination of 1.5 million Armenian men, women and
    children as genocide.

    "Mr. Speaker, in early March, I wrote a letter to the State
    Department because I was outraged to see that Ambassador Evans was
    withdrawn from Armenia. Based on news reports, the State
    Department recalled the Ambassador as retaliation for his
    statements.

    "Over two months have passed since I expressed my disappointment
    and I have yet to receive a response from the State Department. I
    specifically asked Secretary Rice for an explanation as to why
    Ambassador Evans was removed from his post. Not only was my
    inquiry ignored, but other Members' inquires have also gone un-
    answered. Now, the White House has made an "official" announcement
    but still has not given an explanation.

    Mr. Speaker, I hope that the newly-appointed US Ambassador to
    Armenia, Richard Hoagland, will not play the word games of the
    White House, and comply with Turkey's campaign of genocidal denial.

    The New York Times editorial on May 16th this year detailed the
    dangers to Turkey, and to the world, of that country's continued
    denial of the Armenian Genocide. I just want to read the last
    paragraph of that insightful editorial ..."The preponderance of
    serious scholarship outside Turkey accepts that more than a million
    Armenians perished between 1914 and 1925 in a regime-sponsored
    campaign. Turkey's continued refusal to countenance even a
    discussion of the issue stands as a major obstacle to restoring
    relations with neighboring Armenia and to claiming Turkey's
    rightful place in Europe and the West. It is time for the Turks to
    realize that the greater danger to them is denying history."

    Thank you.
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