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Grassroots Pressure Building for Congr. Hearings on Evans Firing

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  • Grassroots Pressure Building for Congr. Hearings on Evans Firing

    GRASSROOTS PRESSURE BUILDING FOR CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS ON EVANS FIRING


    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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