ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY SUBMITS TESTIMONY IN SUPPORT OF GENOCIDE EDUCATION, AFFIRMATION AND PREVENTION
armradio.am
17.12.2009 11:52
The Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law chaired
by Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) and ranking Member Senator Tom Coburn
(R-OK) held a first-ever Congressional hearing on U.S. implementation
of its human rights treaty obligations reported the Armenian Assembly
of America (Assembly).
"We commend Chairman Durbin’s commitment to human rights and the
Subcommittee’s continued efforts to bring these issues to the
forefront, stated Executive Director Bryan Ardouny.
The timing of the hearing was especially welcomed by the Assembly,
as just last week on the Charlie Rose television program, we witnessed
denial at the highest level of the Turkish government when the Turkish
Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said that the Armenian Genocide was
"completely a lie."
"The Assembly looks forward to working together with Congress and the
Members of the Judiciary Subcommittee to bring about an end to the
vicious cycle of genocide and give true meaning to the words never
again," added Ardouny.
In the Assembly’s testimony before the distinguished Subcommittee on
Human Rights and the Law, Executive Director Bryan Ardouny applauded
the Committee’s "pioneering work" and noted that the "treaties under
review embody the spirit of America’s values and our ongoing commitment
to human rights." The Assembly pointed to the long journey ahead
"to ensure that the inherent rights and dignity of every individual
is achieved."
Highlighting the "groundbreaking [U.S.] humanitarian intervention
during the first genocide of the twentieth century against the Armenian
people, which U.S. Ambassador Henry Morgenthau to the Ottoman Empire
described as a ‘campaign of race extermination,’" the Assembly focused
in particular on the United Nations Convention for the Prevention
and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Genocide Convention).
The Assembly recalled the 1951 U.S. filing before the International
Court of Justice (ICJ), pertaining to the Genocide Convention, which
stated that the "Roman persecution of the Christians, the Turkish
massacres of Armenians, the extermination of millions of Jews and Poles
by the Nazis are all outstanding examples of the crime of genocide."
Despite the incontrovertible facts, the Assembly’s testimony indicated
that "Time and time again, and especially in the case of U.S.
reaffirmation of the Armenian Genocide, we have seen the effects of
entrenched interests that thwart genocide affirmation and prevention
efforts. In fact, millions upon millions of dollars by foreign entities
have been spent to deny the Armenian Genocide, and in turn the proud
chapter in American history in alerting the world to man’s inhumanity
to man and marshalling resources to help save the survivors."
Given the corrosive nature of genocide denial, the Assembly
highlighted the importance of education and affirmation as an effective
counterweight, and urged Members of the Subcommittee to cosponsor
legislation (S.Res. 316) introduced by Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ)
along with Senator John Ensign (R-NV), which reaffirms the Armenian
Genocide. Ardouny also invoked Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel poignant
words, "Remember: silence helps the killer, never his victims."
The Assembly also called for the enactment of "a strong education
component…to address the ongoing consequences of genocide denial,
the case of the Armenian Genocide being a prime example. The testimony
concluded with President Barack Obama’s 2008 statement that "America
deserves a leader who speaks truthfully about the Armenian Genocide
and responds forcefully to all genocides."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress