Pallone challenges Turkey’s genocide hypocrisy
armradio.am
14.02.2009 12:33
Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) sharply criticized Turkey’s hypocrisy in
leveling human rights charges against Israel even as it continues to
deny the Armenian Genocide and strengthen its ties to the genocidal
Sudanese regime, reported the Armenian National Committee of America
(ANCA).
In a speech on the House floor, the Armenian Caucus Co-Chairman, called
the attention of his colleagues to increasingly strident Turkish
attacks on Israel, including menacing, even threatening, remarks by
Prime Minister Erdogan, as well as a recent Washington Post report that
a Turkey-based non-governmental organization has initiated a probe to
investigate if war crimes and genocide were committed by Israel during
the recent Gaza Conflict. Commenting on these developments, he noted
that, "For a nation that for 94 years has practiced wide-spread
genocide denial of the killing of one and half million Armenians,
hypocrisy runs deep today in Ankara."
The New Jersey legislator stressed that, "the Turkish people need to
step back and question their skewed understanding of genocide. Look in
the mirror, look at your own history, come to terms with the fact that
1.5 million Armenians died and when contemporary genocides, like
Darfur, take place it must be denounced." He added that Turkey, rather
than denouncing the Darfur Genocide, has actually strengthened its ties
to Khartoum: "Last year, Turkish President Abdullah Gul warmly welcomed
Sudanese President Omar al- Bashir to Ankara. Yet, Al-Bashir continues
to preside over a genocidal regime responsible for the deaths of
300,000 Sudanese people in the Darfur region of the country."