[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 45 (Wednesday, April 22, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E626]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     COMMEMORATION OF THE 83RD ANNIVERSARY OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

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                           HON. STEPHEN HORN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 22, 1998

  Mr. HORN. Mr. Speaker, as we near the dawn of a new millennium, many 
people have begun reviewing the events of the past 1,000 years. In the 
year 1000, Europe was only just beginning to rise from the Dark Ages, 
but the advances of the Enlightenment were still centuries away. Life 
was still brutish and short, marked by random violence and terrible 
scourges. We like to look at history and see a steady improvement in 
the condition of mankind. We would prefer to believe that humanity 
today bears little resemblance to the near-barbarism that marked the 
last millennial change.
  Sadly, as we narrow our focus and look back at the 20th Century, we 
see that many of the horrors that marked the 10th and 11th Centuries 
still exist in our world. This century has seen horrors on a scale that 
even the cruelest leaders of the beginning of this millennium could not 
have imagined. Tens of millions of people have been savagely murdered 
in this century. It is more disheartening that many in the present day 
continue to hide or diminish events of sheer terror.
  In our lifetime, we have seen the genocide of Stalin, of Mao, of 
Hitler, of Pol Pot, and a large number of less known despots.
  While the term genocide did not come into common use until after the 
Nazi-run Holocaust against the Jews, the practice is rooted in the 
efforts of the Turks to destroy the Armenian people 83 years ago. At 
that time, the Ottoman Empire began a movement that would ultimately 
kill more than 1.5 million Armenians and leave deep scars upon those 
who survived--scars that continue to exist today.
  What is so disheartening is that not only did this travesty occur, 
but today the effort to cover up or diminish this awful event 
continues. Mankind is capable of forgiveness, but it requires an 
acknowledgment by the guilty party of that guilt and a desire for 
contrition. Unfortunately, the Government of Turkey wants to escape its 
guilt by blaming the Ottomans and has made no effort at contrition. 
This stands in stark contrast to Germany, which could have tried to 
shirk its guilt by blaming the Third Reich. It did not. It accepted 
responsibility for the truth. Turkey should do the same.
  Turkey not only denies responsibility for its past action, but has 
continued efforts to cause hardship in Armenia by blocking U.S. 
assistance from reaching Armenia and generally trying to obstruct 
closer relations between the United States and Armenia. Turkey is our 
ally and has helped further U.S. and European security. It would be 
unfair to leave this unacknowledged, but it would also be unfair to 
ignore a serious issue that does affect our mutual relations. By 
accepting its responsibility, Turkey can help show that while horrible 
events still take place, mankind has advanced to the point that we 
acknowledge and atone for such awful actions.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to extend my appreciation to the Members of this 
body who have done so much to prevent the world from forgetting the 
atrocities of 83 years ago, and to the many Armenian-American 
organizations throughout the nation--and in particular in California--
for their good work on behalf of the Armenian-American community and to 
foster close ties between the United States of America and Armenia.

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