THE ARMENIAN COMMUNITY OF THE USA HAS A BITTER EXPERIENCE OF PRE-ELECTION PROMISES REGARDING THE ISSUE OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
PanARMENIAN.Net
08.04.2008 GMT+04:00
It is very unlikely that the future Administration in Washington
will take such a step, because in this case the direction of the
foreign policy of the USA carried out in the Near East must undergo
many changes.
Resolution 106 of the US House of Representatives has never been
withdrawn from the Agenda of the US Congress. The truth is, long months
have passed since October 2007 and that would be enough to forget
about the Resolution. However the representatives of influential
Armenian Diaspora Organizations in the USA, and not only them, are
certain that sooner or later the Resolution will be approved.
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ It should be reminded that Resolution 106 is called
"House Resolution" and the approval of the Senate and the signature of
the President of the country aren’t needed for its adoption. However,
it says that "the House calls upon the recognition of the Armenian
Genocide in the Ottoman Empire and calls to use the term "Genocide"
in the President’s annual message to the Armenian Community on April
24. "I think that the voting will be held before the US Congress goes
on holiday," said the head of "Hay Dat" Office Kiro Manoyan. In his
turn the Regional Director of the Armenian Assembly of America (AAA)
in Armenia and in Nagorno-Karabakh Arpi Vardanyan mentioned that the
speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi is ready to put
the resolution to discussion but is waiting for the necessary support
from the American Congressmen. Now the Resolution is supported by 211
congressmen in the House of Representatives and 218 votes are needed
for the Resolution to be passed.
It is most likely, that the current Administration will not put
the Resolution to vote because of the White House’s rather explicit
support of Turkey. The truth is that there is no certainty that if
the Presidential Elections in the USA in November Democrats win, the
Resolution will immediately be passed. The Armenian Community of the
USA has a bitter experience of pre-election promises regarding the
issue of the Armenian Genocide. And this is certainly not something
to expect for the near future. Nobody knows when the American troops
will leave Iraq.
Another thing that cannot be predicted is when the Near Eastern
conflict, where besides Israel and Palestine, Syria and Lebanon are
also involved, will be regulated. In short, the USA will have no time
for the Armenian issue for the moment. Although the Congressmen can
take this step; firstly out of their own interests in the elections in
the Congress and Senate, and secondly out of the wish to show Turkey
its right place. These two factors in the end may overbalance, after
all both the war, and the conflicts are in the other hemisphere. And
the Americans do not actually care about what happened thousand
years ago.
The interesting thing is that the issue of the Genocide has "very
suddenly" started being discussed in Israel. It is quite possible
that the Israeli parliamentarians have been "forced" to go for it
by the unique unification of the Armenian and Jewish Community in
the USA, who have for the first time spoken for the issue of the
Armenian Genocide. "The discussion of the Armenian Genocide in the
Israeli Knesset is indeed unusual and we hope that this discussion
will have its logical outcome," thinks Kiro Manoyan. According to
him, at present all the parties, introduced in Knesset, voted for
the issue being involved in the Agenda. "After the holidays, in May
the discussion of the issue will start. It is quite possible that the
issue will be taken to the Commission on Security from the Commission
on Education. The Deputy Haim Auron and the Office of "Hay Dat" in
Jerusalem is working on this," mentioned Manoyan. He also emphasized
that many deputies of Knesset are assured that the recognition of
the Armenian Genocide is also the moral imperative of Israel.
Meanwhile, Turkey has already started blackmailing Israel. The Head of
the Delegation of the Great National Assembly of Turkey, the Chairman
for Foreign Relations Murad Merdjan is sure that the bill on the
recognition of the Armenian Genocide, which is introduced in Knesset,
will not be passed. "All the plenipotentiary persons in Israel,
including the President of the country Shimon Peres, have assured that
the attempts of discussions of any document on "the Armenian Genocide"
in the parliament are never successful," he declared.