PROMISES, PROMISES: OBAMA, ARMENIANS AND GENOCIDE
By Calvin Woodward
Associated Press
Saturday, April 25
WASHINGTON – Barack Obama was unequivocal during the campaign: As
president, he would recognize the nearly century-old massacre of
Armenians in Turkey as genocide.
In breaking that promise Friday, the president did the same diplomatic
tiptoeing he criticized the Bush administration for doing.
Like George W. Bush before him, Obama did not want to alienate vital
ally Turkey by declaring the slaughter of an estimated 1.5 million
Armenians to be genocide _ especially with Turkey and Armenia now
exploring reconciliation.
Instead, he said he had not changed his view from the campaign,
even as he declined to state it, and added: "My interest remains the
achievement of a full, frank and just acknowledgment of the facts."
In a statement on the anniversary of the start of the killings in 1915
_ a day when U.S. presidents typically honor the Armenian victims _
Obama said: "Each year, we pause to remember the 1.5 million Armenians
who were subsequently massacred or marched to their death in the
final days of the Ottoman Empire."
The statement was less than the full and frank acknowledgment he
promised Jan. 19, 2008, when he vowed that as president, "I will
recognize the Armenian Genocide," and repeatedly used the word.
An excerpt from that 2008 campaign statement, one of several he
released on the subject:
"I also share with Armenian Americans _ so many of whom are descended
from genocide survivors _ a principled commitment to commemorating and
ending genocide. That starts with acknowledging the tragic instances
of genocide in world history. As a U.S. Senator, I have stood with
the Armenian American community in calling for Turkey’s acknowledgment
of the Armenian Genocide.
"Two years ago, I criticized the Secretary of State for the firing
of U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John Evans, after he properly used
the term ‘genocide’ to describe Turkey’s slaughter of thousands of
Armenians starting in 1915. I shared with Secretary (Condoleezza)
Rice my firmly held conviction that the Armenian Genocide is not
an allegation, a personal opinion, or a point of view, but rather a
widely documented fact supported by an overwhelming body of historical
evidence. The facts are undeniable. An official policy that calls on
diplomats to distort the historical facts is an untenable policy.
"As a senator, I strongly support passage of the Armenian Genocide
Resolution (H.Res.106 and S.Res.106), and as President I will recognize
the Armenian Genocide."
Scholars widely consider the events of 1915 to be the first genocide
of the 20th century. Turkey contends the death toll was inflated and
resulted from civil war and unrest, not genocide.
Ken Hachikian, chairman of the Armenian National Committee of America,
said Obama’s statement Friday "represents a retreat from his pledge
and a setback to the vital change he promised to bring about in how
America confronts the crime of genocide."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
