The New Anatolian, Turkey
April 29 2006
Armenian lobby blasts Bush over refusal to say ‘genocide’
The Armenian diaspora in the U.S. is criticizing President W. Bush
for not using the term “genocide” during his speech Monday to
commemorate the controversial events of 1915.
The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) accused Bush of not
keeping his promises to Armenians on April 24, the date they claim as
the commemoration of the genocide claims, in a written statement
Thursday.
“Despite the request of more than 200 U.S. Congress members for Bush
to morally clarify the issue through his statement on April 24, the
president didn’t keep his promise and declined to define the event as
the Armenian ‘genocide’,” ANCA said.
The Armenian Assembly of America (AAA), another prominent Armenian
association in the U.S., also criticized his statements, saying,
“We’re deeply disappointed because the act which aimed at
annihilating Armenians wasn’t described as ‘genocide.'”
More than 20 Congress members participated in a ceremony to
commemorate the Armenian claims of genocide held at the Congress on
Thursday and the participants accused Turkey of “denial.”
During his annual speech to mark April 24, following both his own
practice and that of past presidents, Bush didn’t use the term
“genocide,” but said instead, “Today we’re remembering one of the
horrible tragedies of the 20th century.” Describing the controversial
events as a “tragedy” for all humanity and one “that we and the world
must never forget,” Bush said, “We mourn this terrible chapter in
history and recognize that it remains a source of pain for people in
Armenia and for all those who believe in freedom, tolerance, and the
dignity and value of every human life. It’s a credit to the human
spirit and the generations of Armenians who live in Armenia, the U.S.
and around the globe that they’ve overcome this suffering and proudly
preserved their centuries-old culture, traditions, and religion.”
Bush also called on Turks and Armenians to forge a dialogue in order
to normalize their relations.
The Armenian diaspora accuses the Ottoman Empire of deliberately
massacring up to 1.5 million Armenians between 1915 and 1919. Turkey
stresses that these figures are inflated and says that far fewer
Armenians died, due to civil unrest under the conditions of World War
I and the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Turkey also claims that
during the ethnic conflict, thousands of Turks were also killed by
Armenian militants.
Ankara and Yerevan are at odds over the Armenian claims of genocide.
To break the deadlock, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
last year suggested the establishment of a committee of Turkish and
Armenian historians to study the claims, in a letter sent to Armenian
President Robert Kocharian. But Kocharian refused Erdogan’s proposal,
saying that the two countries must first establish diplomatic
relations and that committees could be formed only within the process
of normalization of relations.