[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 54 (Thursday, April 26, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E644]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    COMMEMORATING ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. RUSH D. HOLT

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 26, 2001

  Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, earlier this week, on April 24, we 
commemorated the 86th anniversary of one of the most harrowing events 
in modern day history--the beginning of the Armenian Genocide. From 
1915 to 1923, over one and a half million Armenians were killed by 
Turks in inter-communal warfare.
  Hundreds of Armenian leaders, writers and professionals in 
Constantinople were rounded up, deported and killed. Five thousand of 
the poorest Armenians were butchered in the streets and in their homes. 
Men, women and children were driven into the desert between Jerablus 
and Deir ez-Zor to die of starvation, disease and exposure. In 1915, 
the New York Times reported that families were burned alive in wooden 
houses or chained together and drowned in Lake Van.
  To this day, the human rights abuses and atrocities that were 
committed against the Armenians by the Turks remain disturbing and 
continue to have a tremendous impact on the stability of this region.
  During a campaign speech in February 2000, President Bush stated, 
``The Armenians were subjected to a genocidal campaign that defies 
comprehension and commands all decent people to remember and 
acknowledge the facts and lessons of an awful crime in a century of 
bloody crimes against humanity. If elected President, I would ensure 
that our nation properly recognizes the tragic suffering of the 
Armenian people.''
  It is important to remind the President of his pledge. As a Member of 
the Congressional Armenian Caucus, I joined my colleagues in signing a 
letter to President Bush addressing the need to uphold his promise to 
recognize the Armenian Genocide as what it was--genocide. We cannot let 
this statement become an empty campaign promise.
  Mr. Speaker, the Congress of the United States remembers the 
Armenians. It is time for the world to deal honestly with this 
senseless genocide and redress this tragedy. I urge my colleagues to 
join me in condemning the genocide and honor the memory of 1. 5 million 
innocent victims.

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