RADANOVICH LEADS CONGRESSIONAL EFFORT TO URGE
DeFacto Agency, Armenia
June 25 2006
Four leading Congressional friends of Armenia, George Radanovich (R-CA)
and Adam Schiff (D-CA), and Congressional Caucus Co-Chairmen Frank
Pallone (D-NJ) and Joe Knollenberg (R-MI), have strongly encouraged
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to reconsider the recall of
Ambassador Evans, reported the Armenian National Committee of America
(ANCA).
In a June 22nd letter, the legislators noted that "after months of
speculation," the recall of Ambassador Evans "was confirmed when the
President nominated Richard Hoagland to serve as the new United States
Ambassador to the Republic of Armenia on May 23. While there has been
no official acknowledgement that Ambassador Evans removal was a result
of his February 2005 statement that the Armenian Genocide was the first
genocide of the 20th Century, all evidence points to that conclusion."
"We join with Armenian Americans across the country in thanking
Congressman Radanovich, Schiff, Pallone, and Knollenberg – the four
lead authors of the Armenian Genocide Resolution – for once again
taking the lead in challenging the State Department’s failed policy
of complicity in Turkey’s denial of this crime against all humanity,"
said Aram Hamparian, Executive Director of the ANCA. "We share their
belief that Ambassador Evans’ recall should be reversed and look
forward, in the days ahead, to learning more about the circumstances
behind this ill-advised, morally unjustifiable, and increasingly
controversial action."
The Congressional letter closed with the four legislators expressing
their belief that "the United States must formally recognize the
Armenian Genocide, and we will continue to work towards that goal.
Allowing John Evans to continue as Ambassador to Armenia sends a
strong message on the necessity of Turkish recognition, and will be
an important step in establishing the U.S. position on the Armenian
Genocide."
The State Department, with the blessing of the White House, fired
Amb. Evans in response to his February 2005 statements at Armenian
American community functions, during which he properly characterized
the Armenian Genocide as "genocide." Following his statements, Amb.
Evans was forced to issue a statement clarifying that his references to
the Armenian Genocide were his personal views and did not represent
a change in U.S. policy. He subsequently issued a correction to
this statement, replacing a reference to the genocide with the word
"tragedy." The American Foreign Service Association, which had decided
to honor Amb. Evans with the "Christian A. Herter Award," recognizing
creative thinking and intellectual courage within the Foreign Service,
reportedly rescinded the award following pressure from the State
Department in the days leading up to Turkish Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to Washington, DC to meet with President Bush.