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TURKEY'S ALLIES IN WASHINGTON TRY TO MUTE CRITICISM ANTI-CHRISTIAN ABUSES
PanARMENIAN.Net
March 22, 2012 - 10:35 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net - A major national publication has revealed the
inner-workings of how allies of Ankara in Washington twist arms
to mute legitimate criticism of Turkey's anti-Christian abuses,
Asbarez reports.
Nina Shea, a member of the U.S. Commission on International Religious
Freedom, which recently placed Ankara on its "black list," has publicly
shared a troubling revelation about the Obama Administration pressuring
commissioners to sweep criticism of Turkey's anti-Christian policies
and practices under the rug.
"Turkey's Ambassador Tan predictably protested the listing as
'unfair.' More surprisingly, after the State Department was tipped off
by a USCIRF commissioner who was appointed by Pres. Obama, assistant
secretary for human rights Michael Posner 'reached out' on Turkey
to another commissioner, resulting in his changing his mind after
the report was put to bed. The Turkey decision resulted from a new
analysis that will stir controversy," said Shea in a revealing new
piece in the National Review Online.
"These days, Turkey uses more sophisticated, subtler measures that
are resulting in the elimination of its Christian and non-Muslim
minorities. The cudgel is a dense tangle of bureaucratic restrictions
that thwart the ability of churches to perpetuate themselves and,
in some cases, even to meet together for worship," added Shea.
"As Uscirf chair Leonard Leo explained, 'some of the countries we
recommend for CPC designation maintain intricate webs of discriminatory
rules, requirements and edicts that can impose tremendous burdens
for members of religious minority communities, making it difficult
for them to function and grow from one generation to the next,
potentially threatening their existence,'" explained Shea.
From: Baghdasarian
PanARMENIAN.Net
March 22, 2012 - 10:35 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net - A major national publication has revealed the
inner-workings of how allies of Ankara in Washington twist arms
to mute legitimate criticism of Turkey's anti-Christian abuses,
Asbarez reports.
Nina Shea, a member of the U.S. Commission on International Religious
Freedom, which recently placed Ankara on its "black list," has publicly
shared a troubling revelation about the Obama Administration pressuring
commissioners to sweep criticism of Turkey's anti-Christian policies
and practices under the rug.
"Turkey's Ambassador Tan predictably protested the listing as
'unfair.' More surprisingly, after the State Department was tipped off
by a USCIRF commissioner who was appointed by Pres. Obama, assistant
secretary for human rights Michael Posner 'reached out' on Turkey
to another commissioner, resulting in his changing his mind after
the report was put to bed. The Turkey decision resulted from a new
analysis that will stir controversy," said Shea in a revealing new
piece in the National Review Online.
"These days, Turkey uses more sophisticated, subtler measures that
are resulting in the elimination of its Christian and non-Muslim
minorities. The cudgel is a dense tangle of bureaucratic restrictions
that thwart the ability of churches to perpetuate themselves and,
in some cases, even to meet together for worship," added Shea.
"As Uscirf chair Leonard Leo explained, 'some of the countries we
recommend for CPC designation maintain intricate webs of discriminatory
rules, requirements and edicts that can impose tremendous burdens
for members of religious minority communities, making it difficult
for them to function and grow from one generation to the next,
potentially threatening their existence,'" explained Shea.
From: Baghdasarian