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[Congressional Record: April 28, 2005 (Extensions)]
[Page E832-E833]
>From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:cr28ap05pt2-77]
COMMEMORATING THE 90TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
______
HON. JOHN F. TIERNEY
of massachusetts
in the house of representatives
Thursday, April 28, 2005
Mr. TIERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise with my fellow members of the
Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues to commemorate the Armenian
Genocide. Today, I stand with them and with Armenian-Americans in the
6th District of Massachusetts as we rightfully recognize and renounce
the unpardonable horror that occurred 90 years ago.
What began in 1915 when Ottoman Empire officials forcibly led
Armenians to their brutal death lasted until 1923. Those 8 long years
saw the deaths of 1.5 million innocent victims, who were unsuspectingly
led from their homes, their schools, their places of work and worship
only to be systematically slaughtered at the hands of Turkish guards.
All the while, the world stood silent, failing to act despite the
fact the number of unmarked graves multiplied exponentially throughout
Armenia. The tremendous magnitude of this
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genocide did not move prominent nations or their people to act. This is
why, today, as we remember the victims of the Armenian genocide, we
must also reject our collective unresponsiveness to this mass murder.
Regrettably, this pattern continued throughout the 20th century–in
Germany in the 1930s and 1940s, in Rwanda in the 1990s, and elsewhere
throughout the world. Another such tragic example has emerged in Sudan.
It is estimated that 300,000 or more people have been massacred in
Darfur. One million people have been displaced from their homes, and
more than 200,000 refugees have been forced to flee to neighboring
Chad. We must not continue to ignore the dire situation in Darfur. In
fact, the lessons of the Armenian Genocide, among others, should teach
us that we must take further action in Sudan.
Today, I honor the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, offer
my respects to those who were killed, and pay tribute to the commitment
and perseverance of the Armenian-Americans who have tirelessly
struggled to ensure that the great sorrow of their people becomes known
to all people.