[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 45 (Wednesday, April 22, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H2218]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 LET US REMEMBER THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Horn) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  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 
purges from time to time. 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. More than 100 million people have been savagely murdered 
in this century. It is disheartening that many in the present day 
continue to hide or diminish these 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 lesser known despots; the 
Nazi Holocaust against the Jews.
  The practice of genocide certainly was 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 it left deep scars upon those who survived, 
scars that continue to exist today.
  What is so disheartening is that not only did this awful travesty 
occur but today the effort to cover it 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 
guilty by blaming the Ottomans and has made no effort at 
reconciliation.
  Mr. Speaker, 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 the security of the United States 
and Europe. 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 these 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 California, for 
their good work on behalf of the Armenian American community and to 
foster closer ties between the United States and Armenia.
  Let us remember. Let us never forget.

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