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Armenian genocide resolution introduced in the U.S. Senate

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  • #1

    Armenian genocide resolution introduced in the U.S. Senate

    Armenian genocide resolution introduced in the Senate

    By Jordan Fabian - 10/21/09 02:31 PM ET

    Sens. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and John Ensign (R-Nev.) on Wednesday introduced a resolution that calls for the U.S. government to recognize the Armenian genocide.

    The measure calls on President Obama to "ensure that the foreign policy of the United States reflects appropriate understanding and sensitivity concerning issues related to human rights, ethnic cleansing, and genocide documented in the United States record relating to the Armenian Genocide."

    The U.S. government does not recognize the mass killings of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire in the 1910s and 1920s as a genocide. Turkey denies that the massacres ever occurred despite evidence to the contrary.

    The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) commended the senators for introducing the measure.

    "On behalf of all Armenian Americans, we thank Sens. Menendez and Ensign for ... moving America toward a full and proper commemoration and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide," said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. "This legislation, in seeking to end U.S. silence in the face of Turkey's denial of this crime ... very powerfully, helps make Armenia and all the world safer from future genocides."

    The Senate resolution is similar to a House version introduced by Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), which has attracted over 130 cosponsors.

    The House Foreign Affairs Committee has not considered the resolution.

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  • #2
    Re: Armenian genocide resolution introduced in the U.S. Senate

    The Sarkisian/Nalbandian move with protocols made it certain we'd never see this in the US. We couldn't even get it passed with enough congressional support (thanks to Clintons interference in the 1990's).

    It's a waste of time/money...we should be working towards positive things, not more pandering to foreign nations. its sad that we learn nothing from the thousands of years of imperialism from Armenian history.
    kurtçul kangal

    Comment

    • #3
      Re: Armenian genocide resolution introduced in the U.S. Senate

      Originally posted by AlphaPapa View Post
      The Sarkisian/Nalbandian move with protocols made it certain we'd never see this in the US. We couldn't even get it passed with enough congressional support (thanks to Clintons interference in the 1990's).

      It's a waste of time/money...we should be working towards positive things, not more pandering to foreign nations. its sad that we learn nothing from the thousands of years of imperialism from Armenian history.
      For once I don't disagree with you. Here is an article you may find interesting. I don't agree with everything he says, but he does bring up interesting points.

      Astarjian: How Now, Armenians?

      By Henry Astarjian • on October 21, 2009

      Indeed, how now Armenians? When your government has deceived your cause, when the diaspora is converted into a community like the others, when your leaders have engaged in municipal work, collecting garbage, running schools, managing pseudo-warship houses, and competing with each other to be photographed with a congressman, indeed what now Armenians?

      For two decades or more, diasporan leaders pretending to know have chased a wild goose in their pursuit of genocide recognition. They have failed miserably! Convinced that America will stand up for justice and believing the promises made by presidents, senators, and Congress’s Armenian Caucus, they have become a single issue disorganized organizations.

      The hand dealt to us, at this moment in time, could not be more suitable. All kings—President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Clinton, Majority Leader Harry Reid, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi—were all staunch supporters of the genocide resolution in Congress, yet the genocide issue is sidetracked at best, or else killed.

      That is what American thinking dictates: Subjugate moral convictions to interests, forget a genocide perpetrated almost a century ago, and still claim guardianship of morality in the world. Alas, their policies do not say much about the moral guardianship of the United States. It is dead and I am sorry for that.

      And yet, our diasporan leaders are hell-bent on pursuing the matter the same old way—chasing congressmen and senators, and posting pictures for show and tell.

      Our leaders think there will be a suitable time for all supporters of the cause to pass the resolution. They delude themselves with that illusion to justify their existence.

      What happened to the Armenian nation is a crime of maximal degree. It devastated us individually and collectively. We grieved the loss, we grieved the dead, we shouted in the desert for the world to hear, but received no echo. We grieved and grieved, until grief grew into depression, which controlled our minds and captivated our souls. It became the nation’s raison d’etre. We became fixated on the global recognition of the genocide as if our problems were one and only one.

      In the immediate aftermath of the genocide, when our nation lived under gasoline-can shelters and off bread crumbs in the Arab land, our devastated and depressed leaders managed to inject antidotes to uplift the spirit of a nation. They worked hard to preserve the nation’s ethnic identity. Using self-pity as a vehicle, they told the ghettos to raise their heads for they were the sons of a great, civilized, and unique nation. They were Armenians. Yes, that was necessary and effective at the time, but that line of rhetoric created a single issue-oriented nation searching for identity. They found it in a vacuum in form of compatriotic societies: the Marash Compatriotic Society, Hajno Genjots Miyutiun, Compatriot Society of Van, that of Urfa, and a variety of others headed by the Cilician group.

      These organizations were instrumental in keeping their ethnic identity glued to their villages, hamlets, and towns, even though most of them spoke Turkish, not Armenian. The individual became known by his village or place of birth: Fekertsi Avedis, Marashtsi xxxxran, Vanetsi Vanig, Malatiatsi Artin, etc. Time and effort succeeded in preserving the Armenian language amongst the refugees and strengthened the compatriotic societies.

      The big losers in this development were the political parties. The political party’s banner of Azad Angakh Haiastan (free, independent Armenia), though prominent in each social or political gathering, became a slogan and a symbol of inaction, instead of the battle cry for liberation. The leadership did not and could not develop meaningful policies to mobilize the nation politically. It all sounded hollow!

      World War II came and brought with it a disaster on the Armenian nation, compounding the national wounds the First World War had inflicted upon us.

      The diaspora was politically divided into two: The faction that supported the United States and the West did so hoping that they would see the demise of the Soviet Union and the return of the First Armenian Republic, which they had established. The other faction supported, even collaborated with, the Soviets for “love of Armenia.” They, in essence, became the fifth column undesirables in the Arab land that had hosted them.

      In Iraq, one of the five founders of the Communist Party was an Armenian. I knew him and his family personally. People of the same conviction were instrumental in encouraging others to immigrate to Soviet Armenia. The war had claimed the lives of a half a million Armenians, not counting those who were exiled to Siberia by Stalin. This was another major trauma of devastating consequences to the Armenian nation.

      Then the “Armenia lovers,” a group of bourgeoisie, believed that Soviet Armenia’s borders were what they were, despite the fact that the Soviets had conceded Armenia’s Kars and Ardahan to Turkey with the Kars Treaty of 1921. They thought we should be happy with what we got, that the most we could hope for were financial reparations from Turkey. These were the merchants, the professionals, or those who had been educated by a bunch of missionaries, who were there to preach the Bible. (Incidentally, they could not convert a single Muslim.) These people hold the same conviction now; they want financial reparation, ignoring the core issue of land demands.

      In another group were the artisans, the poor, and the poorly educated country folk, who had battled the Turk, the Kurd, the Amirahs of Istanbul, and some members of the Armenian clergy. These were the people who told Serge Sarkisian—the Benedict Arnold of the Armenian nation who is determined to fix the Armeno-Turkish border as it is now, and hell-bent on giving away our gains in Artsakh (Karabagh)—to “get lost.”

      This is a birds-eye view of what befell our nation, and it is fair to ask our leaders, indeed ourselves, how now Armenians?

      Home - The Armenian Weekly
      http://www.hairenik.com/weekly/2009/10/21/astarjian-how-now-armenians/
      For the first time in more than 600 years, Armenia is free and independent, and we are therefore obligated
      to place our national interests ahead of our personal gains or aspirations.



      http://www.armenianhighland.com/main.html

      Comment

      • #4
        Re: Armenian genocide resolution introduced in the U.S. Senate

        Nice reading. To me, the genocide recognition is a distraction, convenient for both those 'leaders' and 'followers'.
        kurtçul kangal

        Comment

        • #5
          Re: Armenian genocide resolution introduced in the U.S. Senate

          Turkish Ambassador Cites Protocols in Renewed Attack on Armenian Genocide Resolution



          WASHINGTON—On Oct. 23, Turkey’s Ambassador to the U.S. Nabi Sensoy, appearing on a Voice of America television news segment on the Senate introduction of the Armenian Genocide Resolution, cited the newly signed Turkey-Armenia Protocols as a reason for his government’s intensifying campaign to block U.S. recognition of this crime against humanity, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

          Responding to a question on this legislation, the Turkish envoy stressed: “I hope that there will be no progress on this issue. I don’t think it was the right time to take this step since the resolution was introduced immediately after the signing of the Turkey-Armenia Protocols. It is wrong and sad. I am hopeful that it [the resolution] will not reach the [Senate] floor.”

          Earlier this week, Senators Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and John Ensign (R-Nev.) introduced the Senate version of the Armenian Genocide (S.Res.316). The House version, introduced earlier this year, has over 130 cosponsors. House resolution lead sponsors Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and George Radanovich (R-Calif.) commended their Senate colleagues in a statement issued on Oct. 22, saying, “The United States has a moral obligation to recognize the heinous acts of genocide and all human rights abuses that have occurred – without that recognition we are doomed to repeat the atrocities of the past.”

          ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian, who was interviewed by Voice of America’s Aram Vanetsyan for this segment, cited the broad-based support for the Armenian Genocide Resolution from President Barack Obama, Vice-President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during their years in the Senate. Responding to reports that the Turkey-Armenia Protocols would harm international Armenian Genocide affirmation efforts, Hamparian explained that Turkey entered into negotiations with Armenia, not because of any charitable impulse, but, rather, because of its desire to somehow derail the growing pressure of Armenians worldwide in isolating Ankara’s bankrupt campaign of denial. Armenian Americans will, Hamparian added, continue to press, assertively, powerfully, and effectively for a truthful and just resolution of the Armenian Genocide.

          Comment

          • #6
            Re: Armenian genocide resolution introduced in the U.S. Senate

            From the article above:

            Responding to a question on this legislation, the Turkish envoy stressed: “I hope that there will be no progress on this issue. I don’t think it was the right time to take this step since the resolution was introduced immediately after the signing of the Turkey-Armenia Protocols. It is wrong and sad. I am hopeful that it [the resolution] will not reach the [Senate] floor.”
            How many times haven`t we heard this: "It`s not the right time because...bla bla"

            Comment

            • #7
              Re: Armenian genocide resolution introduced in the U.S. Senate

              Originally posted by Alexandros View Post
              From the article above:



              How many times haven`t we heard this: "It`s not the right time because...bla bla"
              Indeed Alexandros, for Turkish genocide denying chauvinists, the "time" will never come unless WE hold them accountable to it.

              Comment

              • #8
                Re: Armenian genocide resolution introduced in the U.S. Senate

                Originally posted by Alexandros View Post
                From the article above:



                How many times haven`t we heard this: "It`s not the right time because...bla bla"
                For the Turks, its more complex than that. Their whole states foundation is turkification, and this 'recognition' is an insult to what they believe to be the great and wonderful history of turkish nationalism since the ottoman blunders. also, there's the kurdish issue, greek/cyriot issue, pan-turanist plans in bulgaria, syria, and former soviet states...

                To Turks, we are a thorn in the side, disposable and insignificant. Sarkisyan ENABLED them to pull the thorn out of their side, with nothing to gain but more pain and suffering.
                kurtçul kangal

                Comment

                • #9
                  Re: Armenian genocide resolution introduced in the U.S. Senate

                  Yerevan Silent On Armenian Genocide Bill



                  Official Yerevan has refrained so far from backing a U.S. congressional resolution that calls on President Barack Obama to officially describe the 1915-1918 mass killings and deportations of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire as genocide.
                  The draft resolution was introduced in the U.S. Senate by two pro-Armenian legislators last week. Similar legislation was circulated in the House of Representatives early this year.

                  President Serzh Sarkisian’s office on Tuesday declined to react to the development. The Armenian Foreign Ministry, for its part, said it will not comment on the matter.

                  Turkey has already criticized the Senate bill through its ambassador to the United States, Nabi Sensoy. Speaking to the Voice of America late last week, Sensoy said it runs counter to the spirit of the fence-mending protocols signed by Armenia and Turkey in Zurich on October 10.

                  “I hope that there will be no progress on this issue. I don’t think it was the right time to take this step since the resolution was introduced immediately after the signing of the Turkey-Armenia protocols,” he said. “It is wrong and sad. I am hopeful that [the resolution] will not reach the [Senate] floor.”

                  The administration of Sarkisian’s predecessor Robert Kocharian was quick to welcome such bills throughout is decade-long rule, adding to Ankara’s fury with what it sees as baseless genocide allegations. Whether the current Armenian leadership has changed that policy is not clear.

                  The Sarkisian administration has faced accusations of a sellout ever since it unveiled the two protocols envisaging the establishment of diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey and reopening of their border. Its opponents are particularly unhappy with protocol clauses that commit Armenia to recognize the existing frontier and essentially accept a Turkish proposal to set up a commission of historians tasked with studying the World War One-era massacres. They say Yerevan is thus making it easier for Ankara to keep the U.S. and other countries from adopting genocide resolutions.

                  Vartan Oskanian, a vocal critic of the protocols who served as Armenia’s foreign minister from 1998-2008, insisted on Tuesday that Armenia could have cut a deal with the Turks without making either concession. In a written response to RFE/RL questions, he also confirmed that the ongoing Turkish-Armenian dialogue started in 2007, during the final months of Kocharian’s presidency.

                  “On the border, our formulation was the internationally accepted language used in protocols for establishing diplomatic relations which makes reference to the principle of territorial integrity, with no mentioning whatsoever of mutual recognition of current borders,” said Oskanian. “This is clearly the standard protocol text for diplomatic relations which Armenia has used with over 120 countries.”

                  According to Oskanian, Kocharian also insisted that the events of 1915 should be tackled by a Turkish-Armenian inter-governmental commission along with other issues of mutual interest. The controversial protocols do envisage the formation of such a commission. But it would be divided into several “sub-commissions” specializing in particular areas. One of them is to engage in an “impartial scientific examination of historical documents and archives.”

                  “Although when I left office, there was no full agreement on these or many other issues and there was no document on the table yet, I do believe that Armenia could have negotiated a much better text than the one we have in hand,” said Oskanian. “It could have been more along the lines of the above formulations and would have been acceptable to Turkey, if Turkey were truly ready to overcome the Azerbaijani obstacle and go to normalization.”

                  “This conviction has been reinforced given Turkey’s recent declaration of zero problems with all neighbors and also given the growing European and American pressure on Turkey to open the border with Armenia,” added the former foreign minister.

                  Meanwhile, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu indicated on Monday that Ankara is confident that it can get the Turkish-Armenian historical “subcommission” to accept the official Turkish version of the 1915 killings. In an interview with Al Jazeera television, he also seemed to suggest that the joint panel would help his government depoliticize the highly sensitive issue.

                  “Historical facts should be researched based on historical documents,” Davutoglu said. “There is a historical fact and there is a war of propaganda. Until now what we observed was a war of propaganda for political purposes.

                  “This new condition will take it to the right place: a research based on historical data. Historical data means archives.” “I am self-confident. I know the archives,” he added.

                  Yerevan Silent On Armenian Genocide Bill
                  http://www.armenialiberty.org/content/article/1862713.html
                  Official Yerevan has refrained so far from backing a U.S. congressional resolution that calls on President Barack Obama to officially describe the 1915-1918 mass killings and deportations of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire as genocide.
                  Azerbaboon: 9.000 Google hits and counting!

                  Comment

                  • #10
                    Re: Armenian genocide resolution introduced in the U.S. Senate

                    Originally posted by Federate View Post
                    Yerevan Silent On Armenian Genocide Bill

                    Photo caption:

                    Gül: Flowers from the fields of Van.

                    Sargsyan: Ahhh, you shouldn't have.

                    Comment

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