ARMENIANS PRESS OBAMA

Hurriye
Jan 22 2009
Turkey

WASHINGTON – As Barack Obama assumes the United States presidency,
the largest US Armenian group launches a fresh initiative to urge the
new administration to officially recognize the Armenians’ claims of
genocide with e-mails and letters

Only hours after Barack Obama was sworn in as U.S. president Tuesday,
the largest U.S. Armenian group began a fresh initiative to urge
the new Washington administration to recognize the 1915 incidents as
"genocide".

The Armenian National Committee of America, or ANCA, called on the
1.5-million U.S. Armenian community to send e-mail messages or letters
to the White House on mass to urge a formal recognition.

In previous such ANCA campaigns, tens of thousands of Armenian messages
reached their destination within a few days, and a similar outcome
is expected this time.

To facilitate the effort, titled "Ask President Obama to Honor His
Pledge to the Armenian Community," the ANCA also published a standard
letter text that can easily be electronically transmitted by willing
Armenians or their supporters.

Obama pledged at least twice during last year’s presidential election
campaign that he would recognize the Armenians’ claims of genocide,
if he became president. "I encourage you to continue energetically
working toward congressional commemoration, presidential recognition,
and Turkish acknowledgement of the Armenian genocide. As you have
stated so eloquently and repeatedly, the facts of this crime are
undeniable and should be recognized by the United States," said the
standard ANCA text, to be sent by Armenians to Obama.

"I look forward to your straight-forward condemnation of the
1915-1923 crime of race extermination by Ottoman Turkey that killed
one-and-a-half-million Armenians," it said.

Greater hope this time With Obama as president and many other
pro-Armenian officials now in top positions in the new administration
and in Congress, the Armenians hope this time they will win formal
U.S. recognition of the claims of genocide. Analysts also agree that
this is highly probable.

But the Armenians also fear that this may not be the case, given
the fact that some earlier presidents, including Obama’s predecessor
George W. Bush, who earlier had promised recognition, then changed
their positions when in power.

"The clarity of your promise to recognize the Armenian genocide is
particularly welcome in light of the unfortunate practice of past
presidents to use, under Turkey’s pressure, evasive and euphemistic
terminology rather than directly acknowledging the Armenian genocide,":
the standard ANCA text said.

The ANCA’s fresh effort came only a few days after 20 U.S. Armenian
groups jointly urged in a letter then President-elect Obama to keep
his "genocide recognition" pledge.

Ankara warns that formal U.S. recognition of the 1915 incidents as
"genocide" would hurt bilateral relations in a major and lasting
way.Analysts suggest that U.S. Armenian groups are expected to continue
efforts to try to keep the matter high on the new administration’s
agenda during the run-up to April 24, a day commemorated by successive
U.S. administrations as the day for the "remembrance of the 1915
incidents.