EVE OF APRIL 24 TRANQUIL ON THE ARMENIAN FRONT

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
April 24 2008

The influential Armenian diaspora is preparing to mark April 24, the
day they claim marks the anniversary of the beginning of a systematic
genocide campaign against Armenians in the last years of the Ottoman
Empire.

Last year, pressure on the US administration was considerably high,
with the expectation of having the word "genocide" included in the
text of a commemoration message which is traditionally delivered by
the US president on April 24.

The Armenian diaspora continues to deal with the disappointment
over the fact that a resolution which called the 1915 killings of
Armenians by Ottoman Turks a genocide has not yet been adopted by
the US Congress even though it was passed by a US congressional
committee in October of 2007. In his message for April 24 of last
year, US President George W. Bush adhered to the administration’s
policy of not referring to the incidents as genocide.

"Each year on this day we pause to remember the victims of one of the
greatest tragedies of the 20th century, when as many as 1.5 million
Armenians lost their lives in the final years of the Ottoman Empire,
many of them victims of mass killings and forced exile," Bush said.

Turkey categorically rejects the claims of genocide and says as many
Turks were killed when the Armenians took up arms against the Ottoman
Empire in collaboration with the invading Russian army.

Bush, in his message, also called for the normalization of ties
between Turkey and Armenia. "Today, we remember the past and also look
forward to a brighter future. We commend the individuals in Armenia
and Turkey who are working to normalize the relationship between their
two countries. A sincere and open examination of the historic events
of the late-Ottoman period is an essential part of this process. The
United States supports and encourages those in both countries who are
working to build a shared understanding of history as a basis for
a more hopeful future," he said. Turkey mounted a massive lobbying
campaign last year to defeat the resolution supporting Armenian claims
of genocide at the hands of the Ottoman Empire.

Though the resolution passed the House Foreign Affairs Committee,
many of its co-sponsors withdrew their support after meeting with
Turkey’s lobbyists. That, along with pressure from Republicans and
the Bush administration, forced House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to postpone
a floor vote on the resolution last year.

US administration policy on the issue remains the same, a US diplomat
based in Ankara told Today’s Zaman yesterday, on the eve of the
anniversary. "I haven’t yet seen any draft text. However, taking
into consideration the fact that our administration’s policy remains
the same, I assume that this year’s text will look similar to last
year’s text," US Embassy Press Attaché Kathryn Schalow said when
asked about Bush’s message, which is expected to be released today.

In the last few months, more than the content of Bush’s message, the
Armenian diaspora based in the US has been focused on presidential
candidates and their stances on the very same issue. The Washington
based-Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) already announced
earlier this year that US Democratic presidential hopeful Barack
Obama had gained their support.

The support for Obama came days after he pledged in January to
officially recognize the controversial World War I-era killings of
Anatolian Armenians as genocide if he becomes president.

ANCA, meanwhile, has been pushing a fierce campaign for adoption
of the related resolution at the US Congress with an aggressive
campaign targeting Turkey. "Who decides when America speaks on human
rights?" is the leading slogan of the campaign. "You should… Not
a foreign government," it answers.

On ANCA’s Web page, a picture showing the mouth of the Statute of
Liberty gagged with the Turkish flag is shown.

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