Jews back ‘Armenia genocide’ bill
Ron Kampeas
Seven of the eight Jewish members on the House Committee on Foreign
Affairs voted in favor of a resolution recognizing the World War I-era
Ottoman massacres of Armenians as genocide. Individually, however,
several of them seemed conflicted.
Published: 10/12/2007
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Members of the U.S. House Committee on Foreign
Affairs ignored party lines this week in a close vote Wednesday
approving a resolution recognizing the massacres carried out in 1915
and 1916 by Ottoman forces against Armenians as a genocide.
But the tally among Jewish members on the committee — all of them
Democrats — was overwhelming: 7-1 in favor.
Overall, the motion passed the committee in a 27-21 vote — 19
Democratic and 8 Republican in favor, 8 Democrats and 13 Republicans
opposed — despite last-minute warnings from President Bush and his
top aides that the resolution could harm U.S. relations with Turkey.
Lawmakers from both parties openly anguished, with some appearing to
make up their minds only at the last minute.
And, despite the overwhelming support of Jewish committee members for
the resolution, nowhere was the anguish more palpable than in the
comments of some of these lawmakers, as they struggled to balance
their Holocaust-related sensitivity to the issue of recognizing
genocide and concern for maintaining strong ties with Turkey, a
friendly pro-American pro-Israeli Muslim beacon in a hostile
neighborhood.
Weighing additionally in the considerations of the Jewish members was
an 11th hour plea from Turkey’s Jewish community, which fears a rise
of anti-Semitism should the resolution pass. Plus, in recent weeks,
Turkish spokesmen have noted the outspoken role of some Jews and
Jewish organizations in the campaign to pass the resolution and have
suggested that relations with Israel could be affected, although
Israel has been supportive of Turkish calls to resolve the issue
through an international commission.
"This has been tough for me," said U.S. Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.),
the chairman of the committee’s Middle East subcommittee, when
announcing his vote in favor of the resolution. "I’m a big fan and
supporter of Turkey."
Ackerman looked across at four nonagerian and centenarian survivors of
the genocide who had flown in for the hearing — two from his
district. His New York Democratic colleague, Eliot Engel, also
contemplated the women as he announced his position: "With a heavy
heart, I will vote for this resolution."
The four women sitting quietly in the cramped committee room’s second
row held the attention of crowd, with members looking to them when
they announced their vote.
"No to H.Res.106," said the pro-Turkish stickers; "End the cycle of
genocide," said those favoring the resolution. In many cases they sat
one next to another, avoiding glances.
All the committee’s members weighed Turkey’s threats to downgrade its
military alliance with the United States should the resolution pass
the full House against the powerful Armenian American lobby and its
proven ability to swing key districts in California.
Three of the Jewish Democrats on the committee, plus the Democratic
lawmaker who sponsored the resolution, U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, are from
the Golden State. Schiff, who represents a substantial Armenian
community in his Los Angeles district, is not on the committee, but
attended the vote as an observer.
Jews in Massachusetts, which like California is home to a substantial
Armenian community, have also backed the resolution. On Monday, two
days before the hearing, the Jewish community there hosted the
Armenian pontiff, Karekin II, on a tour of Boston’s Holocaust
memorial.
Karekin, a Turkish subject based in Istanbul, is enjoined by Turkish
law from mentioning the Armenian genocide, which claimed an estimated
1.5 million lives, and he did not bring it up during his visit.
However, Nancy Kaufman, the director of the Boston Jewish Community
Relations Council, said the symbolism was clear.
"We at the JCRC have been on board" backing the resolution "for two
years," she said. Karekin’s visit "was a validation and recognition of
that support."
Turks were making their own case to the Jews through Holocaust
recognition; the same day as the Karekin tour, Turkey’s foreign
minister visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem.
Two major Jewish groups — the American Jewish Committee and the
Anti-Defamation League — have recognized the massacres as genocide,
but cited concerns regarding Turkey in arguing against the resolution.
"This is a political gesture, not a moral gesture," the ADL’s national
director, Abraham Foxman, said of the resolution.
It did not seem political for the seven Jews on the committee who
voted for the measure: denials of genocide had special resonance for a
caucus dedicated to preserving Holocaust remembrance.
"Genocide denial is not just the last step of a genocide, it is the
first step of the next genocide," said Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.),
who, like many others on the committee, referenced the apocryphal
story that Adolf Hitler cited the world’s neglect of the Armenians in
arguing that the mass murder of Jews would also be forgotten.
Rep. Ron Klein (D-Fla.), who was instrumental as a state legislator in
introducing Holocaust education in Florida, cited what he said were
the two words that must answer all genocides, "Never again."
Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.), who has grown close to the Turks in his
capacity as chairman of the committee’s Europe subcommittee, was the
only Jewish member of the committee to vote against the resolution. He
noted Turkey’s role in routing supplies to U.S. forces in Iraq, as
well as its lead peacekeeping role in Afghanistan and the Balkans.
"Turkey also remains a critical partner to our ally, Israel," Wexler
said, one of the few times the Jewish state was mentioned during the
hearing.
Sherman said the Turks would get over whatever slight they perceived,
adding that political considerations should not always be paramount.
"Who would go to the floor and say, ‘We need Ramstein air force base
in Germany, let’s tear down the Holocaust memorial,’" he asked his
colleagues.
"Do your duty to honor the truth," Ackerman exhorted his colleagues.
When the clerk announced the result — upping it from 26-21 to 27-21
when U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, a Jewish Democrat from Arizona,
rushed in to announce her yes vote — Armenians in the room burst into
tears and rushed to Schiff to embrace him.
U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos (D-Cali.), the chairman of the committee and the
only Holocaust survivor in Congress, said he was never prouder to
serve on the committee and announced that he would soon introduce a
resolution marking the U.S.-Turkish friendship.
Ostensibly at least, that did little to assuage Turkish anger. On
Thursday Turkey recalled its ambassador in Washington, Nabi Sensoy,
for "consultations" and continued to warn that passage by the full
House would undermine its relations with the United States.
Sensoy attended the session. After the vote, before heading back to
his home country, the Turkish ambassador said it was now up to U.S.
Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), the House speaker, to emulate her
Republican predecessors who used parliamentary maneuvers to keep the
resolution from reaching the floor. On Thursday, Turkey recalled
Sensoy for "consultations."
"We hope the Speaker of the House will assume the leadership that is
expected of her," Sensoy told reporters after the hearing. That’s
unlikely, sources in both parties said: Pelosi was not going to stop
the resolution from reaching the floor, although she would stop those
who are trying to use a parliamentary device to rush legislation to
the floor.
Privately, however, pro-Turkish lobbyists were exulting — the vote
was much closer than expected. Estimates from within the committee on
Tuesday evening predicted a 35-11 win for the resolution. The
narrowing gap meant that the resolution might yet fail.
Some members had clearly changed their minds at the last moment. In
one of the oddest moments of the hearing, Rep. Rubin Hinojosa
(D-Texas) delivered an impassioned defense of the resolution — and
concluded that he would vote no. The room fell silent, all eyes on him
as he cast his own down.
Source: 012schiffsensoy.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
