ANCA: Turkish Lobbyist Attacks Armenian Americans

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Armenian National Committee of America
888 17th St., NW Suite 904
Washington, DC 20006
Tel: (202) 775-1918
Fax: (202) 775-5648
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet: www.anca.org

PRESS RELEASE
March 24, 2006
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918


-- Former Congressman Bob Livingston Accuses Armenian American
Community of Seeking to Impose "Tyranny of the Minority"

WASHINGTON, DC - Turkey's top Washington, DC lobbyist, former
Louisiana Congressman Bob Livingston, in perhaps his most strident
attack to date, has accused Armenian Americans of seeking to impose
a "tyranny of the minority" by urging the Congress to adopt human
rights legislation concerning the Armenian Genocide, according to
documents obtained this week by the Armenian National Committee of
America (ANCA).

"It's truly the height of hypocrisy for a paid foreign agent for
Turkey - a government that violates the rights of its citizens on a
wholesale basis - to try to diminish the role that American
citizens play in the formulation of our nation's foreign policy,"
said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. "But, apparently, in
the 'Alice in Wonderland' world of Bob Livingston, other nations
dictate U.S. policy, genocides remain unpunished, and foreign
lobbyists get to silence American voters. He would do well to
spend more time encouraging his Turkish clients to learn about
democracy, and less time seeking to abridge the democratic rights
of Americans here at home."

In letters sent to Congressional offices last September, prior to
the House International Relations Committee's consideration of
Armenian Genocide legislation, Livingston, escalated his rhetoric
to unprecedented levels, arguing, in his capacity as a paid agent
of a foreign government, that he believed the measure "cater[s] to
a small minority of citizens promoting the narrow goals of the
minority at the expense of America's broader interest." He went
on, in an example of overstatement rare even by Washington, DC
standards, to contend that Armenian Genocide legislation "is the
truest expression of the tyranny of the minority." The panel
rejected Livingston's attack, voting 40 to 7 to approve the
legislation.

In July of last year, CongressWatch, an arm of Public Citizen,
released a 49-page report highlighting ethical concerns about the
Livingston Group's lobbying efforts for the Turkish Government.
The report details the efforts by Livingston, to secure a "$1
billion supplemental appropriation for Turkey. . . despite that
country's refusal to allow U.S. troops to use its soil as a staging
area for the Iraq invasion. He also helped kill an amendment that
would have formally recognized the Armenian Genocide that occurred
between 1915 and 1923." The Livingston Group has received over $10
million in payments from Turkey. To read this entire report, visit:

http://www.lobbyinginfo.org/documents/RevolveDoor.pdf

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A Saddening View In Washington D.C.-

Asli Aydintasbas, a columnists of the Sabah daily who was in attendance at the annual meeting of the American-Turkish Council (ATC) in Washington D.C., explained her impressions in her column on Wednesday.
''For the first time in my life, I engulfed in sadness when I entered the conference hall. ATC meetings are not ordinary events. In fact, those meetings were used to be held with the participation of leading figures from the Turkish government, business circles and the General Staff. American senators, military officials, bureaucrats and executives of giant companies were used to attend the ball prior to the meetings. Baku-Ceyhan oil pipeline project was shaped during those meetings. But this year, the conference hall was half empty.

Of course it is not a problem of bad organization but is the sign of 'confidence crisis' in bilateral relations. I talked to a high-level American official at dinner and he told me that everybody was fed up with talking about Turkish-American strategic partnership. He also said that there were obvious problems. He did not attend the ATC meetings, but complained about the movie ''Valley of Wolves-Iraq'', the visit (to Ankara) of Hamas delegation, distressing developments at the (Turkish) Central Bank and the possibility of legalization of the Koran classes by the government. He was afraid of Turkey's metamorphosis into a new Malaysia.

This was the sad view I observed in Washington D.C. in the spring of 2006. I asked another high-level American official whether he would attend the ATC meetings. He told me that he rather prefer to go to a dinner to be hosted by the Armenian National Congress.

As usual, the resolution on the so-called Armenian genocide will be on the agenda in April. Turkey do not rely on support of the Jewish lobby in Washington D.C any longer. Some say that the resolution might have a coercing impact on U.S. senators. In that case, we will have to forget about 50-year Turkey-US friendship.''

http://www.anatoliantimes.com/hbr2.asp?id=116000

Published: 3/29/2006