[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 50 (Thursday, April 24, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E748]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. HOWARD L. BERMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 23, 1997

  Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in commemoration of the 
Armenian genocide.
  The atrocities committed against the Armenian people in the late 19th 
century and the early 20th century ranks among the worst such 
occurrences in human history. As the 19th century drew to a close, 
authorities in the crumbling Ottoman Empire decided to crack down 
against a growing movement for Armenian autonomy. After enduring brutal 
persecution, the Armenians refused to pay the taxes levied by their 
oppressors. As a result, thousands of innocent civilians lost their 
lives and thousands more witnessed the destruction of their homes--all 
because the Ottoman Government wanted to teach them a lesson.
  When the Armenians sought to publicize their plight by seizing a 
government building in Constantinople, government forces instigated a 
vicious pogrom during which over 50,000 perished. Several years later 
during the First World War, Armenian service in the Allied cause 
prompted the Turkish authorities to order the deportation of almost the 
entire Armenian population from their homeland to two distant provinces 
of the Turkish Empire, Syria and Palestine. Well over one million died 
during this long forced march, many thousands at the hands of 
government soldiers and many more from disease and malnutrition.
  It is unfortunate that we have not managed to escape the consequences 
of these atrocities. The legacy of bitterness is readily observable in 
central Asia, where memories of past injustice have complicated the 
search for peace and stability in Nagorno-Karabakh.
  As the horror continued, thousands of Armenians came to this country. 
Many of their heirs now live in my own State of California, where they 
have established an enviable record of prosperity and service to the 
United States. California is home to the largest Armenian-American 
population in the United States. The California State Assembly 
designated April 24, 1997 as ``California Day of Remembrance for the 
Armenian Genocide of 1915-23, and for the Victims of the Sumgait 
Pogroms of 1988 and Baku Riots of 1990.''
  The resolution notes that Armenians in Nagorno Karabagh remain at 
risk until a peaceful resolution to the Karabagh conflict is reached 
that guarantees the freedom of security for these people while 
supporting their right to self-determination.
  We join Armenians around the world as we remember the terrible 
massacres suffered in 1915-23, among one of the worst tragedies to 
befall a group of people.
  Even though this is a day of commemoration for the thousands who 
perished in the Armenian genocide, we must not forget the great duty of 
those now living to prepare a better world for generations to come.

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