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  • Grassroots Pressure Building For Congressional Hearings On Evans Fir

    GRASSROOTS PRESSURE BUILDING FOR CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS ON EVANS FIRING

    Noyan Tapan
    Armenians Today
    Jun 1 2006

    WASHINGTON, JUNE 1, NOYAN TAPAN - ARMENIANS TODAY. Tens of thousands
    of Armenians - in the United States and Armenia - have voiced
    their outrage over the Administration's firing of U.S. Ambassador to
    Armenia John Marshall Evans, reported the Armenian National Committee
    of America (ANCA). In Armenia, tens of thousands of Armenians took
    part in the "Yellow Ribbon Campaign" to protest the Evans firing and,
    more broadly, to voice opposition to a number of recent instances in
    which foreign diplomats stationed in Armenia have denied the Armenian
    Genocide. The campaign, which took place at the Tsitsernakaberd
    Memorial to the Armenian Genocide in Yerevan, started on April 24th
    with countless thousands of individual Armenians each tying a single
    yellow ribbons on 100-yard lengths of rope stretched along the walking
    path leading to the Genocide Monument. In the United States, Armenian
    American activists have called for Congressional hearings into the
    Government of Turkey's role in dismissal of this highly-respected
    35-year Foreign Service veteran over his honest and accurate
    description of the Armenian Genocide as a clear case of genocide. The
    ANCA WebFax system - on the web at www.anca.org - has been used by
    activists from throughout the United States - including a large number
    from state and districts represented by Members of committees with
    oversight responsibility of the State Department. In their WebFaxes,
    these concerned citizens have stressed that: "Ambassador 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. Ambassador 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." In demanding hearings on the Evans firing, the WebFaxers
    note that these inquiries should "include testimony by all the key
    figures involved, including the Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
    and National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley. Among the issues that
    should be explored are the role of the Turkish Government in exporting
    its suppression of speech to the United States and the implications
    for the future of the Foreign Service if a senior American diplomat's
    career has been ended simply for acknowledging the historical record
    on one of the world's greatest human rights tragedies." Commenting
    on the lack of openness by the Administration in dealing with this
    matter, the WebFax letters note 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." The firing of Amb. Evans
    was the result of his February 2005 statements at Armenian American
    community functions characterizing the Armenian Genocide as a genocide.

    Following his statements, Amb. Evans was forced to issue a statement
    clarifying 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. Congressional Response: On the eve of the announcement of
    Evans' replacement, 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. Earlier,
    Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chair Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Rep. Adam
    Schiff (D-CA) and Rep. Grace Napolitano (D-CA) had each officially
    called on Secretary Rice for a clarification of the State Department's
    position on this issue. They have yet to receive any response to their
    inquiries. Media Response: 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. On March 24th, the
    Fresno Bee, published a similarly strong editorial condemning Evans'
    firing. The Washington Times, on May 26th, ran a story about the
    "geopolitical firestorm" created by Evans' remarks. The publisher
    of the California Courier, Harut Sassounian, in his weekly column,
    urged U.S. Senators to place a "hold" on the nomination of Richard
    Hoagland, the diplomat slated to replace Ambassador Evans. This
    action in response to the Administration's unresponsiveness, argued
    Sassounian, will force the White House to fully explain the reasons
    behind its early termination of Ambassador Evans' career. Armenian
    Youth Response: At the Armenian Youth Federation Junior Educational
    Seminar, held in Western Pennsylvania over the Memorial Day weekend,
    over 400 young Armenian Americans designed, produced, and signed
    original petitions protesting the Administration's decision to fire
    Amb. Evans for telling the truth about the Armenian Genocide.
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