Tweet
ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION INTRODUCED TO US CONGRESS AMID TURKISH-AMERICAN CRITICISM
Daily Sabah, Turkey
March 19 2015
RAGIP SOYLU
A bipartisan group of Congressmen on Wednesday introduced the
Armenian-lobby-backed controversial Armenian Genocide Truth and
Justice Resolution and faced harsh criticism from leaders of the
Turkish-American community.
Reps. David G. Valadao (CA-21), Robert Dold (R-IL), Adam Schiff (D-CA)
and Frank Pallone (D-NJ), along with 39 other Members of the House of
Representatives publicized House Resolution 154 with a press conference
in front of Congress. Rep. Schiff said that the draft resolution,
if passed by Congress, would officially recognize the Armenian
genocide and call upon President Obama to work with the Turkish and
Armenian governments to bring about the reconciliation based upon
full acknowledgment of the historic fact of "Armenian genocide."
Representatives declared last month that they would be introducing
the resolution on February 24, which accuses the Ottoman Empire of
committing genocide in 1915 by killing 1.5 million Armenians, but
they failed to find enough signatories.
The Turkish Institute for Progress (TIP), a New York-based increasingly
influential Turkish-American association, condemned such "divisive
tactics" implemented by the Armenian National Committee of America
(ANCA) and said that the resolution undermines U.S. interests and
jeopardizes the chance for peace and reconciliation between the
Turkish and Armenian communities. TIP adviser and former U.S.
Representative, Solomon P. Ortiz, said, "We ask the Armenian Diaspora
and the powerful lobbying groups behind them to cease the tactics
that create further conflict and join us in our mission to look toward
the next hundred years."
The resolution, marking the 100th anniversary of the 1915 incidents,
recalls President Barack Obama's early remarks on the issue before
entering the office, when he stated that he firmly held the conviction
that the Armenian Genocide is not an allegation or a personal opinion
but rather a widely documented fact. The resolution also blames the
Turkish government for the collapse of diplomatic reconciliation
between Turkey and Armenia by quoting then Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton's statements, "the ball remains in Turkey's court."
Ä°brahim Uyar, co-chair of the Turkish American Steering Committee -
a joint endeavor of 145 Turkish American organizations - said that
the resolution might not succeed. "Armenians clearly see that the
Congress will not pass the resolution. They have a new date, which is
2023, the 100th anniversary of Turkish Republic, to complete their
task. This is why they focus more on state-level resolutions in New
Jersey and Massachusetts."
The Armenian lobby recently increased its pressure on Turkish
communities abroad and has sometimes used somewhat bold tactics. The
Turkish Ambassador to France Hakkı Akil was attacked with a cup of
pomegranate juice by a French-Armenian protester on March 2 during
his talk on "Secularism in Turkey and France" at the faculty of law at
Paris Descartes University. An Armenian publication recently targeted
Congressman Bill Schuster because of his refusal to become one of
signatories of the Armenian resolution. Publisher of the Armenian
community daily, The California Courier, said that Armenians should
apply "such pressure" to Bill Schuster to create an example showing
other representatives that they too would be targeted for defeat. The
same newspaper called on Armenians to pressure American companies
to cancel their official contract with the Gephardt Group, one of
Turkey's lobbying firms.
http://www.dailysabah.com/diplomacy/2015/03/19/armenian-genocide-resolution-introduced-to-us-congress-amid-turkishamerican-criticism
Daily Sabah, Turkey
March 19 2015
RAGIP SOYLU
A bipartisan group of Congressmen on Wednesday introduced the
Armenian-lobby-backed controversial Armenian Genocide Truth and
Justice Resolution and faced harsh criticism from leaders of the
Turkish-American community.
Reps. David G. Valadao (CA-21), Robert Dold (R-IL), Adam Schiff (D-CA)
and Frank Pallone (D-NJ), along with 39 other Members of the House of
Representatives publicized House Resolution 154 with a press conference
in front of Congress. Rep. Schiff said that the draft resolution,
if passed by Congress, would officially recognize the Armenian
genocide and call upon President Obama to work with the Turkish and
Armenian governments to bring about the reconciliation based upon
full acknowledgment of the historic fact of "Armenian genocide."
Representatives declared last month that they would be introducing
the resolution on February 24, which accuses the Ottoman Empire of
committing genocide in 1915 by killing 1.5 million Armenians, but
they failed to find enough signatories.
The Turkish Institute for Progress (TIP), a New York-based increasingly
influential Turkish-American association, condemned such "divisive
tactics" implemented by the Armenian National Committee of America
(ANCA) and said that the resolution undermines U.S. interests and
jeopardizes the chance for peace and reconciliation between the
Turkish and Armenian communities. TIP adviser and former U.S.
Representative, Solomon P. Ortiz, said, "We ask the Armenian Diaspora
and the powerful lobbying groups behind them to cease the tactics
that create further conflict and join us in our mission to look toward
the next hundred years."
The resolution, marking the 100th anniversary of the 1915 incidents,
recalls President Barack Obama's early remarks on the issue before
entering the office, when he stated that he firmly held the conviction
that the Armenian Genocide is not an allegation or a personal opinion
but rather a widely documented fact. The resolution also blames the
Turkish government for the collapse of diplomatic reconciliation
between Turkey and Armenia by quoting then Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton's statements, "the ball remains in Turkey's court."
Ä°brahim Uyar, co-chair of the Turkish American Steering Committee -
a joint endeavor of 145 Turkish American organizations - said that
the resolution might not succeed. "Armenians clearly see that the
Congress will not pass the resolution. They have a new date, which is
2023, the 100th anniversary of Turkish Republic, to complete their
task. This is why they focus more on state-level resolutions in New
Jersey and Massachusetts."
The Armenian lobby recently increased its pressure on Turkish
communities abroad and has sometimes used somewhat bold tactics. The
Turkish Ambassador to France Hakkı Akil was attacked with a cup of
pomegranate juice by a French-Armenian protester on March 2 during
his talk on "Secularism in Turkey and France" at the faculty of law at
Paris Descartes University. An Armenian publication recently targeted
Congressman Bill Schuster because of his refusal to become one of
signatories of the Armenian resolution. Publisher of the Armenian
community daily, The California Courier, said that Armenians should
apply "such pressure" to Bill Schuster to create an example showing
other representatives that they too would be targeted for defeat. The
same newspaper called on Armenians to pressure American companies
to cancel their official contract with the Gephardt Group, one of
Turkey's lobbying firms.
http://www.dailysabah.com/diplomacy/2015/03/19/armenian-genocide-resolution-introduced-to-us-congress-amid-turkishamerican-criticism