[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 47 (Tuesday, April 26, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: April 26, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                     ARMENIAN GENOCIDE COMMEMORATED

                                 ______


                               speech of

                        HON. WILLIAM O. LIPINSKI

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 19, 1994

  Mr. LIPINSKI. Mr. Speaker, the history of the Armenian people is a 
long and bitter story marked by repression and genocide. I'm speaking 
of course about the Armenian genocide of 1915 to 1923 carried out by 
the Ottoman empire.
  It is not a story that is widely known. There is little mention of it 
in our history books. It is not taught to our children in school. And 
it is not commemorated on the kind of scale it deserves. On behalf of 
the Armenians who live in my community, I am proud to take a few 
minutes to honor the victims of the genocide.
  The Armenian genocide was the culmination of a long effort by the 
Ottoman Turks to destroy the Armenian people. During the decades 
preceding the First World War, the Ottoman government tried repeatedly 
to achieve this goal. In 1895 three hundred thousand died. In 1909 
another thirty thousand died before the Western Powers intervened to 
stop the bloodshed.
  Unfortunately, World War I provided the cover they needed. With 
Europe and the United States preoccupied by war, the Ottoman Turks 
carried out their massacre without outside attention or interference. 
The genocide began on April 24, 1915, with a sweep of Armenian leaders. 
It did not end until 1923 when the entire Armenian population of two 
million had been killed or deported. Very few survived.
  It is estimated that 1.5 million Armenians died at the hands of the 
Ottoman Turks--half of the world's Armenian population at the time. By 
1923 the Turks had successfully erased nearly all remnants of the 
Armenian culture which had existed in their homeland for 3,000 years.
  As we look back on this tragedy today, we see the memory of the 
victims insulted by those who say the genocide did not happen. A well-
funded propaganda campaign forces the Armenian community to prove and 
re-prove the facts of the genocide. This is itself a tragedy for a 
people who would rather devote their energy to commemorating the past 
and building the future.
  I stand here today to say the genocide did happen. Nobody can erase 
the painful memories of the Armenian community. Nobody can deny the 
photos and historical references. Nobody can deny that few Armenians 
live where millions lived 80 years ago.
  It is our responsibility and our duty to keep the memories of the 
genocide alive. A world that forgets these tragedies is a world that 
will see them repeated again and again. The story of this and other 
genocides must be known by all.
  We must also honor the victims who perished so brutally. We cannot 
right the terrible injustice inflicted upon the Armenian community and 
we can never heal the wounds. But by properly commemorating this 
tragedy, Armenians will at least know the world has not forgotten the 
misery of those years. Only then will Armenians begin to receive the 
justice they deserve.

                          ____________________