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ANKARA: US Armenians Seek Unexpected Vote On 'Genocide' Bill

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  • ANKARA: US Armenians Seek Unexpected Vote On 'Genocide' Bill

    US ARMENIANS SEEK UNEXPECTED VOTE ON 'GENOCIDE' BILL

    Hurriyet
    http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=us-armenians-seek-surprise-vote-on-genocide-bill-2010-12-15
    Dec 15 2010
    Turkey

    The largest and most influential U.S. Armenian group has launched
    a grassroots campaign to urge the House of Representatives to pass
    an "Armenian genocide" resolution before the term of the current
    Congress expires.

    Though Armenian groups have lobbied for such a resolution many times
    before, typically ahead of April 24, the date when some countries
    commemorate the alleged genocide, the Armenian National Committee of
    America, or ANCA, is now hoping to push one through before the end
    of the year, when one of its congressional champions will lose her
    leadership post.

    "There's just a slight chance to pass the bill now, but the Armenians
    are trying their chances," one Washington-based analyst told the
    Hurriyet Daily News & Economic Review. "This looks more like a year-end
    fundraising effort."

    ANCA's move came shortly after some Armenian-American celebrities
    launched similar campaigns to urge the current House speaker, the
    Democrat Nancy Pelosi, to bring the bill recognizing Armenian claims
    of genocide to a House floor vote before stepping down.

    When the new Congress takes office Jan. 3, Pelosi, a strong supporter
    of the Armenian cause, will have to cede her post to the present
    Republican minority leader, John Boehner. The Republicans regained
    control of the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of Congress,
    with a major victory in congressional midterm elections held Nov. 2.

    ANCA said in a statement late Tuesday that the U.S. Armenian community
    is "united in a common commitment to U.S. recognition of the Armenian
    genocide, an end to Turkey's denials and a truthful and just resolution
    of this still-unpunished crime against the Armenian nation."

    Armenia claims up to 1.5 million Armenians were systematically killed
    in 1915 under the rule of the Ottoman Empire. Turkey denies this,
    saying that deaths were the result of civil strife that erupted when
    Armenians took up arms for independence in eastern Anatolia.

    "Tens of thousands of Armenian Americans have joined
    genocide-prevention advocates in making the case for the adoption of
    this human-rights measure," ANCA said in its statement, calling on its
    supporters to send messages to Pelosi and individual House members
    urging approval of the resolution. "The Armenian-American response
    has been unprecedented in size, scope and depth, bringing together
    young and old, from first-generation families to fifth-generation
    descendents of the first Armenian immigrants."

    ANCA also praised Armenian-American celebrities for their efforts to
    generate support for the resolution. TV celebrity Kim Kardashian last
    week sent a message to millions of her fans on the social-networking
    website Twitter, asking Pelosi to schedule a vote on the bill. Rock
    musician Serj Tankian made a similar move.

    "We applaud Kim Kardashian, Serj Tankian and anti-genocide activists
    from across the country for calling on Speaker Pelosi to schedule
    a vote on the Armenian genocide resolution," said Aram Hamparian,
    ANCA's executive director.

    Turkey has repeatedly warned that its bilateral relationship with the
    United States would deteriorate in a major and lasting way if the U.S.

    administration or Congress adopts a measure recognizing the Armenian
    genocide claims. The House Foreign Affairs Committee narrowly passed
    the current measure in March, and the House leadership took the bill
    to its agenda in September.

    Despite unseating Pelosi from her leadership post, the Republican
    takeover of the House will not necessarily bring relief to Turkey,
    many analysts have warned. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a staunch supporter
    of Israel, is expected to become the new chairwoman of the House
    Foreign Affairs Committee after the new Congress opens. She and other
    pro-Israeli lawmakers may seek measures against Turkey in response
    to Ankara's deteriorating ties with Tel Aviv, the analysts say.

    The new Congress elected Nov. 2 will take office Jan. 3. Any
    congressional sessions held between Nov. 2 and the new year are called
    "lame duck" sessions. Under contemporary conditions, any meeting of
    Congress that occurs between a congressional election in November
    and the following Jan. 3 is a lame duck session. The significant
    characteristic of such a duck session is that its participants are
    the sitting members of the existing Congress, not those who will be
    entitled to sit in the new Congress.




    From: A. Papazian
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