MORE THAN 300 EUROPEAN ORGANIZATIONS URGE OBAMA TO RECOGNIZE GENOCIDE

1222_4/7/2009_1
Tuesday, April 7, 2009

BRUSSELS–A letter signed by more than 340 European organizations is
urging US President Barack Obama to stand firm against Turkish pressure
and honor his campaign pledge to recognize the Armenian Genocide,
reported the European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy.

The letter, sent to the White House while the President was in London
for the G20 summit Friday, stresses that a failure to recognize the
Armenian genocide "would be interpreted by genocide-perpetrating
governments as a full license to continue their bloody acts." It
highlights Turkey’s growing support for the Sudanese government as a
contemporary example of how the genocide in Darfur continues because
states like Turkey have gone unpunished for committing the same crime.

"Recognizing the Armenian Genocide means moving toward a durable
peace; it means more stability, more justice and more democracy in
the region," said Hilda Tchoboian, the chairperson of the European
Armenian Federation. "These are European values. The European Armenian
Federation shares these values with President Obama and we hope these
values can once again become the bulwark of US policy."

A proper recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the United States,
the petition says, "will unleash the momentum of true change and
democratization inside Turkey" and "provide unprecedented momentum
to the process of dialogue between Turkey and Armenia."

A principled stand by the United States would "definitely require of
Turkey a fundamental commitment to a just peace," the letter adds.

The letter states that European Armenians along with other European
mainstream democratic forces would never accept Turkey’s membership
in the EU as long as "the Turkish state denies the Armenian Genocide,
promotes racism and pursues a policy of discrimination towards its
minorities."