REP SHARES PERSONAL TIES TO ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BILL
Richard Conn
Wicked Local Waltham
97237216/Rep-shares-personal-ties-to-Armenian-geno cide-bill
April 28 2009
When this day rolls around each year, state. Rep. Peter Koutoujian
said he thinks of the plight endured by his grandparents, Abraham
and Zarouhi.
Today is the annual day of remembrance of the mass killings carried
out by the Turkish Ottoman Empire in 1915, which resulted in the
deaths of 1.5 million Armenians.
He said his grandparents "barely escaped with their clothes on the
their backs" from their small village in Marash, Turkey.
Koutoujian, D-Waltham, along with 82 of his colleagues in the state
House of Representatives passed a bill yesterday which urged Congress
to officially label the deaths as the Armenian Genocide of 1915.
The House bill calls for the passage of a congressional resolution,
which asks the president "to ensure that the foreign policy of the
United States reflects appropriate understanding and sensitivity
concerning issues related to human rights, ethnic cleansing and
genocide documented in the United States record relating to Armenian
genocide."
The resolution has the support of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and
about 100 congressmen, Koutoujian said. While Koutoujian said the
resolution may cause a "backlash" from Turkish officials, he said
it’s vitally important it be passed.
"Every single historian has basically documented the fact that it
happened," Koutoujian said. "The only parties that have denied it,
are the Turkish government and those who are under the control of
the Turkish government."
Koutoujian said when his grandparents fled the killings, they followed
the French cavalry, who helped by stamping down the snow to allow
them an easier path.
"During the trek, they saw the bodies of friends, families, and
neighbors all along the sides," Koutoujian said.
Koutoujian said his grandparents were separated during the flight
from their home, with his grandfather ending up in the United States,
while his grandmother fled in Aleppo, Syria where she worked in an
orphanage. They were eventually reunited in Massachusetts.
Sharistan Melkonian, chairwoman of the Armenian National Committee
of Massachusetts, who is from Waltham, called the House resolution
"tremendously important."
Melkonian said Massachusetts elected officials have consistently
"done the right thing" by officially recognizing the genocide.
Melkonian said she’s hoping for an official stance soon from both the
president and Congress, which would send a message that further acts
of genocide would not be tolerated.
"When it comes to taking a stand the U.S. Congress as a whole has
not lived up to what we hoped it would live up to," she said. "It’s
important to send a message to Congress and the president that we
can do more."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
