[Congressional Record: April 23, 2007 (Extensions)]
[Page E834-E835]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:cr23ap07-50]
COMMEMORATING THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
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HON. MICHAEL E. CAPUANO
of massachusetts
in the house of representatives
Monday, April 23, 2007
Mr. CAPUANO. Madam Speaker, I rise today to commemorate a people who
despite murder, hardship, and betrayal have persevered. April 24, 2007,
marks the 92nd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.
Throughout three decades in the late 19th and early 20th centuries,
millions of Armenians were systematically uprooted from their homeland
of 3,000 years and deported or massacred. From 1894 through 1896, three
hundred thousand Armenians were ruthlessly murdered. Again in 1909,
thirty thousand Armenians were massacred in Cilicia, and their villages
were destroyed.
On April 24, 1915, two hundred Armenian religious, political, and
intellectual leaders were arbitrarily arrested, taken to Turkey and
murdered. This incident marks a dark and solemn period in the history
of the Armenian people. From 1915 to 1923, the Ottoman Empire launched
a systematic campaign to exterminate Armenians. In 8 short years, more
than 1.5 million Armenians suffered through atrocities such as
deportation, forced slavery and torture. Most were ultimately murdered.
Many of our companions in the international community have already
taken this final step.
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The European Parliament and the United Nations have recognized and
reaffirmed the Armenian Genocide as historical fact, as have the
Russian and Greek parliaments, the Canadian House of Commons, the
Lebanese Chamber of Deputies and the French National Assembly. It is
time for America to join the chorus and acknowledge the Armenians who
suffered at the hands of the Ottoman Empire. And let me stress that I
am not speaking of the government of modern day Turkey, but rather its
predecessor, which many of Turkey’s present day leaders helped to
remove from power.
As I have in the past, as a member of the Congressional Armenian
Caucus, I will continue to work with my colleagues and with the
Armenian-Americans in my district to promote investment and prosperity
in Armenia. And, I sincerely hope that this year, the U.S. will have
the opportunity and courage to speak in support of the millions of
Armenians who suffered because of their heritage.
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