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07/28/2006
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1. Sen. Reed Presses Rice For Answers on Evans Firing; Hoagland Nomination
2. Turkish Court Rejects Lawsuit Against ‘Pro-Armenian’ Writer
3. Bryza Arrives in Armenia
4. ARF Juniors Begin Armenia Pilgrimage
5. Nevada ANC-PAC Supporters Honor US Senator John Ensign
6. House Adopts Amendment Blocking US Subsidy for Railroad Bypass

1. Sen. Reed Presses Rice For Answers on Evans Firing; Hoagland Nomination

WASHINGTON–Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) has indicated that he is not prepared to
support the nomination of Richard Hoagland as US Ambassador to Armenia
until he
receives meaningful responses to a series of questions–including several
specific inquiries concerning the firing of the current Ambassador John Evans,
reported the Armenian National Committee of America.
In a July 26 letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Senator Reed
explained that he is "concerned that Ambassador Evans is being forced to
resign
prematurely." He stressed that he is "particularly troubled" by reports
that he
is being recalled because he properly characterized the Armenian Genocide as a
genocide. "Had the term genocide been coined in the early 1900s, it would have
been used to accurately describe the situation," added the senior Senator from
Rhode Island.
In closing, Senator Reed asserted that he would not be prepared to support
the
nomination of a new ambassador to Armenia until he understands the answers to
the following questions:

1. Why is Ambassador Evans being replaced a year before the end of the
customary three-year ambassador term? If he resigned, why would the State
Department accept the resignation of a truly dedicated individual who is
highly
respected by the Armenian community?
2. Has the President or State Department directed, either through written or
oral means, Executive Branch personnel not to use the word ‘genocide’ when
referring to the atrocities waged against the Armenian people by the Ottoman
Empire? What is the justification for such a policy?
3. If it is the policy of the United States to not characterize the
systematic
killing of over 1.5 million Armenians as genocide, please elaborate on why
these events do not meet the definitions of the Convention on the Prevention
and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
4. During Ambassador Richard Hoagland’s confirmation hearing before the
Senate
Foreign Relations Committee, regarding the Armenian genocide he stated "I
simply have studied the president’s policy. I’ve studied the background papers
on the policy, and my responsibility is to support the President." What do the
background papers say regarding the Armenian Genocide? I respectfully
request a
copy of these background papers so I can better understand the President’s
policy. If that is not possible, I would like to know why.
5. A recent press report outlined Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matthew
Bryza as saying the following regarding Ambassador Evans, "Ambassadors serve
the President and should follow his policy. President George Bush’s policy on
the mass killings of Armenians is very clear, as he points out in his annual
addresses. If someone disagrees with it, they are at liberty to make their own
decisions, but these should not be divulged. Certainly, our job is also to
advise him, but we must support his policy when it comes to public
statements."
This reporting indicates that Ambassador Evans was asked to resign based on
this prior statements regarding the Armenian genocide. If this is not the
case,
would you explain the statement by Mr. Bryza and its relation to Ambassador
Evans?"

Sen. Reed is the latest Member of Congress to express concern about the
circumstances surrounding the dismissal of Amb. Evans and the State
Department’s policy on the Armenian Genocide. To date, half of the Senate
Foreign Relations Committee, including Senators George Allen (R-Va.), Ranking
Member Joseph Biden (D-Del.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Lincoln Chafee (R-RI),
Norm Coleman (R-Minn.), Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.), Russell Feingold
(D-Wisc.),John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Paul Sarbanes (D-Md.), have already
contacted Secretary Rice or questioned Ambassador Designate Hoagland directly
regarding these issues. Over sixty members of the House have also expressed
concerns to the State Department, with responses side-stepping the core
issues.
On July 18, the ANCA issued a statement opposing the Hoagland nomination,
following several responses to Senate inquiries where the Ambassador Designate
denied the Armenian Genocide.

2. Turkish Court Rejects Lawsuit Against ‘Pro-Armenian’ Writer

ANKARA (Associated Press)–A Turkish court on Friday dropped a lawsuit against
novelist Orhan Pamuk, rejecting a compensation demand by nationalists from the
author for claiming that Turkey had killed more than 1 million Armenians and
more than 30,000 Kurds.
Nationalist lawyer Kemal Kerincsiz and five other nationalists were seeking
6,000 Turkish Lira ($4,500) each from Pamuk accusing him of "insulting,
humiliating and making false accusations."
Pamuk was quoted as telling a Swiss newspaper that: "Thirty-thousand Kurds
and
1 million Armenians were killed in these lands, and nobody but me dares to
talk
about it."
Kerincsiz had instigated an earlier high-profile court case against Pamuk for
the same comments, but those charges were dropped earlier this year, under
harsh criticism from the European Union, which Turkey hopes to join. Turkey,
however, is still trying dozens of journalists or authors for their
writings or
speeches.
The prosecutor’s office on Friday formally opened a lawsuit against a
University of Arizona assistant professor on charges of "insulting
Turkishness." The case against Elif Safak, a Turkish citizen, was opened after
a court approved the indictment. The case was also initiated by Kerincsiz.
Safak will stand trial because of the words uttered by fictional Armenian
characters in her novel "The Bastard of Istanbul" – a book she wrote while she
was living in Tucson, Arizona. In the book, an Armenian character refers to
"Turkish butchers." No trial date was set.

3. Bryza Arrives in Armenia

YEREVAN (Armenpress)–The US co-chairman of the OSCE Minsk Group Matthew Bryza
was scheduled to arrive in Armenia Saturday and leave for a visit to the
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic on the same day.
A US embassy official informed Armenpress that during his regional visit the
co-chairman will first visit Yerevan from where he will leave for Stepanakert
and return back on Sunday. He will leave for Baku Monday.
During his visit, Bryza will meet with the Armenian President Robert
Kocharian, Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian, Karabakh President Arkady
Ghoukassian. At the meetings they will discuss current developments in the
Karabakh conflict regulation process./

4. ARF Juniors Begin Armenia Pilgrimage

YEREVAN (Yerkir)–The opening ceremony of the first ever ARF Junior
Organization’s (Badanegan) Armenia Pilgrimage was scheduled to take place
Saturday at the Yerablur national cemetery with more than 150 participants
from
nine countries.
This annual event will last through August 5 and the juniors will stay at
Aghavnadzor and make trips to different regions in Armenia.
Speaking at a news conference at the ARF Bureau headquarters Program Director
Tatul Harutiunian said the program’s goal is educational.
The slogan of the program is "Armenia is my Homeland." He noted that the
program will strengthen relation between the Homeland and the Diaspora.
Juniors
from Armenia, Javakhk and Nagorno-Karabakh Republic will also participate in
the program.
Saro Ter-Petrosian, the head of the Canadian delegation, said when selecting
the participants, they have chosen those who had never been in Armenia before.
Harutiunian said that a larger number of participants was expected, but the
current crisis in Lebanon prevented many from attending.

5. Nevada ANC-PAC Supporters Honor US Senator John Ensign

LAS VEGASSupporters of the State of Nevada’s largest Armenian American public
affairs organization hosted a fundraising event for the reelection of United
States Senator John Ensign on Friday, July 21.
A dinner-reception honoring the Senator was hosted by Mr. & Mrs. Levon &
Zaruhi Gulbenkian. Mr. Gulbenkian, who serves as a Board Member of the Nevada
ANCA Chapter, was joined by over fifty local community members in supporting
Senator Ensign’s campaign. The Nevada legislator is the Vice Chairman of the
Senate Republican Steering Committee, the group that shapes the party’s
legislative agenda.
On behalf of the Armenian National Committee-Political Action Committee, Ara
Bedrosian presented Senator Ensign with the Nevada ANCA Freedom Award in
recognition of his leadership in advancing the cause of human rights and
genocide recognition. The Senator was commended by a number of Nevada
Armenian
leaders for his outstanding advocacy on behalf of the growing
Armenian-American
community in the state. Bedrosian, a Los Angeles based lawyer, formerly served
as a Congressional aide in Washington to Republican members of Congress.
"Since his election to the US Senate in 2000, Senator Ensign has twice
drafted
and authored resolutions that reaffirm the commitment of the American
people to
recognizing the Armenian Genocide and to ensuring that its lessons are applied
in preventing future crimes against humanity. No other Senator, since Bob
Dole, has twice authored such Genocide resolutions," stated Hriyr Dadaian, Las
Vegas ANCA Board Member. "John Ensign is our community’s best friend, his
leadership on human rights issues is deeply appreciated, not only by Armenian
Americans in Nevada, but by Armenians throughout the country," Dadaian added.

6. House Adopts Amendment Blocking US Subsidy for Railroad Bypass

WASHINGTONThe Armenian National Committee of America, this week, welcomed the
adoption by the House of Representatives of an amendment to block US taxpayer
funding for an unnecessary and costly proposed railroad between Turkey and
Georgia that would, if built, circumvent Armenia and, in the process,
undermine
the economic viability of the existing Caucasus railroad route through
Armenia.
The amendment, spearheaded by Representatives Joe Crowley (D-NY), Ed Royce
(R-CA), and Brad Sherman (D-CA), and adopted as part of the Export-Import Bank
Reauthorization Act of 2006, prohibits the Export-Import Bank from providing
any assistance "to develop or promote any rail connections or railway-related
connections that traverse or connect Baku, Azerbaijan; Tbilisi, Georgia; and
Kars, Turkey, and that specifically exclude cities in Armenia." The measure
was
adopted unanimously by the House Financial Services Committee in June of this
year.
The Crowley Amendment is similar to the South Caucasus Integration and Open
Railroads Act of 2006. This measure was introduced in both the House
(H.R.3361), by Representative Joe Knollenberg (R-MI), and in the Senate (S
2461) by Senator Rick Santorum (R-PA). The House version has 85 cosponsors;
the
Senate version has been cosponsored by Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Paul
Sarbanes (D-MD). Both measures stress that US policy should oppose the "The
exclusion of Armenia from regional economic and commercial undertakings in the
South Caucasus," noting that such actions "undermine the United States policy
goal of promoting a stable and cooperative environment in the region."
"We thank Congressman Crowley, his Financial Services Committee colleagues Ed
Royce and Brad Sherman, as well as the authors of the South Caucasus
Integration and Open Railroads Act – Joe Knollenberg, Frank Pallone and George
Radanovich – for securing the adoption by the House of this measure protecting
American taxpayers from subsidizing an ill-advised and over-priced railroad
project that – at the insistence of Turkey and Azerbaijan – has been proposed
solely for the purpose of excluding Armenia," said Aram Hamparian, Executive
Director of the ANCA.
In debate leading up to the adoption of the bill, Representatives Crowley,
Knollenberg and Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) each cited the importance of barring US
funds from this ill-advised Caucasus venture which would exclude Armenia. Rep.
Crowley noted that, "for over 10 years, Armenia has fought an illegal blockade
imposed on them by the countries of Turkey and Azerbaijan. These two countries
continually exclude Armenia from regional development… Exclusion of one
country in regional projects only fosters instability. Having Export-Import
Bank support a railway project which excludes Armenia is not the way to
include
all countries in regional development."
Rep. Knollenberg noted that "the design for the new rail line defies
logistical and geographical logic, and intends to prevent future economic
development from reaching Armenia. The proposed rail link would cost between
$400 million and $800 million and would take years to construct, even though a
perfectly workable rail link that goes through the city of Gyumri, Armenia
already exists and would be fully operational with a few minor repairs. Mr.
Speaker, I commend my colleagues on the House Financial Services Committee
that
included this provision into this bill and I urge support for passage of H.R.
5068."
Rep. Maloney joined her House colleagues in noting that, "as a proud
member of
the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues and the representative of a large
and vibrant Armenian-American community, I support the provisions which would
prohibit the Export-Import Bank from funding railroad projects in South
Caucasus region that deliberately exclude Armenia."
A proposed new Caucasus rail line – at the urging of Turkey and Azerbaijan –
would circumvent Armenia. Promoters of the project have sought, even at the
planning stages, to secure US financing for this undertaking, prompting
Congressional supporters of regional peace and stability to preemptively block
such attempts.
In October of last year, the European Commission voiced official
opposition to
the proposed Caucasus railroad bypass of Armenia. A formal statement by the
Commission’s Directorate General for Transport and Energy noted that its
construction was both unnecessary and inefficient in light of the existing
railroad connecting Kars, Gyumri, and Tbilisi.
The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) is the official
export credit agency of the United States. Ex-Im Bank’s mission is to
assist in
financing the export of US goods and services to international markets.

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