Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel. (202) 775-1918
Fax. (202) 775-5648
Email anca@anca.org
Internet

PRESS RELEASE
September 18, 2007
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918

ANCA ALERTS CONGRESS TO GROWING ANTI-ARMENIAN SENTIMENT IN TURKEY

— Armenian Genocide Resolution Author, Rep. Adam Schiff Decries
Mounting Turkish Repression of Armenian Minority

WASHINGTON, DC – The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA),
this week, alerted Members of Congress to the growing wave of anti-
Armenian sentiment orchestrated by the Turkish government as part
of its drive to block legislation before the U.S. House and Senate
recognizing the Armenian Genocide.

The dramatic increase in pressure against the Armenian community
coincides with Turkey’s growing frustration over its inability –
either directly or through its highly paid lobbyists – to arrest
the growing bipartisan momentum toward the adoption of the Armenian
Genocide Resolution (H.Res.106 / S.Res.106).

Patriarch of Constantinople to Visit Washington, DC:

With the number of House cosponsors clearing the 50% mark and the
recent reversal of the Anti-Defamation Leagues longstanding refusal
to recognize the Armenian Genocide, the Turkish government has
resorted to a series of increasingly strident – even desperate –
measures. Amid these efforts by Ankara comes a visit to
Washington, DC, this week, by His Beatitude Patriarch Mesrob II,
Patriarch of the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople, who – as
a matter of Turkish law and under the intense pressure applied
against Turkey’s remaining Armenian Christians – has been
constrained from speaking openly about the Armenian Genocide. The
Patriarch has recently been subjected to a number of high profile
death threats, including, this July, a plot to assassinate both him
and Greek Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew I by a criminal
organization of retired officers, known as the Union of National
Forces.

The Patriarch, who – in a sharp departure from traditional Armenian
religious practice – will apparently not be visiting with local
Armenian Churches or the city’s faithful, is scheduled to speak at
a series of public policy engagements on Capitol Hill, Georgetown
University, and elsewhere in the nation’s capital. Among these are
an Iftar dinner on Capitol Hill hosted by the Rumi Forum, a Turkish
American organization with a stated mission to "foster interfaith
and intercultural dialogue." A second, titled, "The Impasse
Between Armenians and Turks Must Be Broken," will be at Georgetown
University, again sponsored by the Rumi Forum, along with
Georgetown’s Woodstock Theological Center.

Rep. Adam Schiff, the lead author of the Armenian Genocide
Resolution, commented on the growing pressure on Turkey’s remaining
Armenians, noting that, "In order to perpetuate its campaign of
denial, Turkey seeks to intimidate all Armenians worldwide, but
especially the Armenians in Turkey who must live with daily
threats. It is a criminal offense to merely speak about the
Armenian Genocide, let alone advocate for the passage of the
Armenian Genocide Resolution before the Congress. The editor of
the last Armenian-language newspaper in Turkey, Hrant Dink, was
assassinated for writing about the genocide this year, and a
popular video now being circulated in Turkey celebrates his killers
and threatens Armenians."

"It should come as no surprise then that the Bishop of the Armenian
community in Turkey, who states that he is under daily threat,
cannot speak about the genocide or support any efforts to recognize
the genocide including those efforts in our country. To do so would
be to place a target on his head and threaten his community even
further. What is a disturbing surprise, however, is the
exploitation of the vulnerable Armenian community in Turkey by
opponents of the resolution."

The ANCA, in a letter circulated yesterday to Congressional
offices, explained that, "Patriarch Mutafyan – like the leaders of
all religious minorities in Turkey – lives in constant fear of acts
of discrimination and retribution by a Turkish government that
actively persecutes those who speak freely on human rights and
other ‘sensitive’ issues. As a virtual hostage, the Patriarch –
whose life has been threatened on many occasions – will, as has in
the past, be forced to follow the Turkish government’s line. It is
truly shameful that Turkey has resorted to using naked coercion –
cynically taking advantage of the concern of Patriarch Mesrob for
the safety of his flock – in a last ditch bid to block the adoption
of the Armenian Genocide Resolution."

YouTube Video Glorifying Dink Assassination:

A highly popular online Turkish video, posted on the video sharing
service YouTube last week, praising the assassination of Turkish
Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, illustrates the type of dangerous
and hate-filled environment that Patriarch Mutafyan will return to
after his orchestrated visit to the United States.

The video, which was originally taken down from YouTube but which
has resurfaced in a number of different forms and has been viewed
by hundreds of thousands in Turkey, depicts images of the Dink’s
killing with a lyric refrain, "If a person betrays the country, he
is finished off." It goes on to show "patriotic" photos of
confessed assassin Ogan Samast glorified in front of the Turkish
flag. Video lyrics also include the chilling warning: "The only
good Armenian or Kurd is a dead Armenian or Kurd." Similar video
of Turkish police proudly posing with Samast shortly following his
January incarceration for the murder was leaked to Turkish press
and made headlines worldwide.

Turkish Armenian newspaper editor Hrant Dink was gunned down in
broad daylight on January 19th in front of his Istanbul "Agos"
newspaper office. Dink had been prosecuted multiple times under
Turkey’s repressive "Article 301" laws, which criminalize reference
to the Armenian Genocide for "insulting Turkishness." Since his
murder, Turkey’s writers and historians, including Nobel Laureate
Orhan Pamuk, Taner Akcam and Elif Shafak who have spoken honestly
about this crime against humanity, have been the target of death
threats.