States News Service, USA
April 22, 2010 Thursday

PALLONE COMMEMORATES 95TH ANNIVERSARY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

WASHINGTON

The following information was released by the office of New Jersey
Rep. Frank Pallone Jr.:

U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Co-Chairman of the Congressional
Caucus on Armenian Issues, issued the following statement at the
commemoration ceremony of the 95th anniversary of the Armenian
Genocide.

Welcome. It is heartening to see so many familiar faces and friends
here this evening. For thousands of years, the Armenian people have
been known for their perseverance in the face of great challenges.
Tonight we will honor the victims and survivors of the Armenian
Genocide on 95th anniversary.

As we commemorate the victims, we pay homage to the Armenian people
for their strength to overcome adversity. We will also hear from
Members of Congress and leaders of the Armenian community as to how
important recognition of the Armenian Genocide is today and what the
path is forward.

I am pleased to be here tonight with my fellow Co-chair of the
Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues, Congressman Mark Kirk, from
Illinois.

I also greatly appreciate the presence a Genocide Survivor who is with
us tonight, Yeretsgeen Sirarpi Khoyan, and two leaders in the
Armenian-American religious community, Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan,
and Archbishop Yeghishe Gizirian.

I appreciate the Diplomatic representatives, Armenian Ambassador to
the US, Tatoul Markarian and Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Representative
Robert Avetyisian for attending.

"I want to thank the Armenian Organizations who have fought for so
long for Genocide Recognition for helping to bring the community to
this event. We have members of the Armenian National Committee of
America and the Armenian Assembly of America with us.

We also have a number of school groups that have traveled to
Washington to commemorate the genocide and I owe a special thanks to
the Hovnanian Armenian School from my home state of New Jersey.

This week is always a somber week for me as I reflect on the victims
of the Armenian Genocide, the continued denial by the Turkish
government, and our own governments inaction in using the word
genocide to describe these events.

Since I first came to Congress I have been pushing for Turkey to
acknowledge the fact of the Armenian Genocide and reconcile itself
with its own history. Our governments complacency is simply
unacceptable when it comes to taking a moral position and recognizing
genocidewherever it may occur.

The Armenian Genocide is the first genocide of the twentieth century.
Between 1915 and 1923 1.5 million Armenians were systematically and
deliberately killed by the Ottoman Turks.

The Armenian Genocide has been recognized by scholars all over the
world, including the International Association of Genocide Scholars
and has been recognized by NATO allies and the European Parliament.

The Genocide has been widely documented as historical fact. Our own
National Archives and writings from US Ambassador to the Ottoman
Empire, Henry Morgenthau, display how the Ottoman government decided
to target the Armenians, move them towards what is the modern day
Syrian Dessert, and kill them indiscriminately.

The Armenian Genocide is a dark day in history, but it must be
remembered and reaffirmed to ensure that not only are the victims and
survivors honored, and so that we can make it clear that genocide will
never be tolerated, past or present.

The House of Representatives made a strong statement this year by
passing the Armenian Genocide Resolution through the Foreign Affairs
Committee. This truly was a testament to the perseverance of all of
you here in ensuring that the genocide is reaffirmed and recognized.

I remain committed to protecting the Armenian Genocide Resolution and
ensuring that we have secured support of the majority of the entire
House of Representatives so that we can close this chapter in American
history with success.

Tonight is a time to remember. We would do well to commemorate the
bravery of those who perished in and survived the Armenian Genocide by
officially recognizing the mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks
for what it was, Genocide.

Thank you for being here tonight. I am always glad to see so many
individuals devoted to this cause.