[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 47 (Wednesday, April 24, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3299-S3300]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

 Mr. LEVIN. Madam President, on this the 87th anniversary of 
the Armenian Genocide, I would like to take a few moments to pay 
tribute to the men, women and children who lost their lives in the 20th 
centuries' first systematic attempt to extinguish an entire people.
  The past century was marred by many acts of unthinkable brutality and 
genocide. Among these events was the Armenian Genocide. April 24 marked 
the inception of a brutal campaign to eliminate Armenians from the 
Turkish Ottoman Empire. It was on this day in 1915 that 300 of the 
leaders in Istanbul's Armenian community were rounded up, deported and 
murdered along with 5,000 of the poorest Armenians who were executed in 
the streets and in their homes. During the period from 1915-1923, 
approximately 1.5 million Armenians perished under the rule of the 
Turkish Ottoman Empire. Countless other Armenians fell victim to 
deportation, expropriation, torture, starvation and massacre. It is out 
of necessity that all freedom loving people must remain vigilant in 
their efforts to rebut and refute those who would deny the events of 
the Armenian genocide ever occurred.
  The Armenian genocide was the result of a consciously orchestrated 
government plan. Henry Morgenthau Sr., the American Ambassador to the 
Ottoman Empire, sent a cable to the U.S.

[[Page S3300]]

State Department in 1915 saying that the, ``deportation of and excesses 
against peaceful Armenians is increasing and from harrowing reports of 
eye witnesses it appears that a campaign of race extermination is in 
progress under a pretext of reprisal against rebellion.''
  During my tenure in the Senate, I have spoken out about the Armenian 
Genocide because we must acknowledge the horrors perpetrated against 
the Armenian people and reaffirm our commitment to ensure that the 
world cannot and will not forget these crimes against humanity. We must 
speak out against such a tragedy and dedicate ourselves to ensuring 
that evils such as the Armenian Genocide are not revisited on our 
planet. This is the highest tribute we can pay to the victims of any 
genocide. It is important that we take time to remember and honor the 
victims, and pay respect to the survivors that are still with us.
  In the Rotunda of the Russell Senate Office Building there is an 
important exhibit displayed by the Genocide Project. The Genocide 
Project is an organization that seeks to preserve the memory of the 
Armenian Genocide by creating powerful displays that combine photos and 
the narrative from survivors of the Genocide. I would urge all my 
colleagues to view this powerful and moving account of the tragic 
events which we remember today.
  The Armenian people have preserved their culture, faith and identity 
for over 1,000 years. In the last century alone, the Armenian people 
withstood the horrors of two World Wars and several decades of Soviet 
dominance in order to establish modern Armenia. I hope all my Senate 
colleagues will join me in honoring and remembering the victims of the 
Armenian Genocide.
  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Madam President, I rise today to acknowledge 
and commemorate the 87th anniversary of the beginning of the Armenian 
Genocide. I do so every year because the lessons of the past must not 
be forgotten and the crimes of the past must not be repeated.
  On April 24, 1915, the Ottoman Empire launched a brutal and 
unconscionable policy of mass murder. Over an 8-year period, 1.5 
million Armenians were killed, and another 500,000 were driven from 
their homes, their property and land confiscated.
  As Americans, as sons and daughters of liberty, justice and freedom, 
we must raise our voices and acknowledge this terrible crime to ensure 
that it does not happen again.
  Those who would single out men, women, and children to be killed 
solely on the basis of their race, ethnicity, and religion must know 
that the United States and the international community will not allow 
their crimes to go unpunished.
  We have seen the crimes of the Armenian Genocide repeated far too 
often in this century: in Germany, in Cambodia, in Rwanda, and in 
Bosnia. We have stood by and remained silent. Let us commemorate this 
occasion and state loud and clear: Never again.
  Even as we remember the tragedy and honor the dead, we also honor the 
living. Half a million Armenian Americans reside in my home State of 
California and I am proud to be their representative in the U.S. 
Senate. They have overcome the horrors of the past to build a better 
future for themselves and their families in the United States. They are 
a testament to hard work, dedication, and perseverence and they have 
greatly enriched the culture and civic life of our State.
  Let us remember the Armenian Genocide. Let us ensure that those who 
suffered did not die in vain. Let us rededicate ourselves to cause of 
human rights for all. Let us work together with Armenia and the 
Armenian American community to create a future filled with hope and 
possibility.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Madam President, today marks the 87th 
anniversary of when the Ottoman Empire began a policy to isolate, exile 
and even eliminate the Armenian population. Today, we pause to remember 
and honor the victims of the Armenian genocide. Between 1915 and 1923 
one-and-a-half-million Armenians were systematically murdered at the 
hands of the Ottoman Empire and hundreds of thousands more were forced 
to leave their homes.
  It has been nearly a century since this period of violence and 
annihilation began, and this anniversary serves as a reminder that this 
tragedy will not be forgotten. It must not be forgotten. Each year I 
commemorate this date on the Senate floor both to honor those who lost 
their lives and to remind the American people that the capacity for 
violence and hate is still prevalent in our world today. Recent history 
in Bosnia, Kosovo, and Rwanda tells us that systematic brutality and 
the attempts to extinguish a population because of their ethnicity are 
still all too real. And recent news reports detailing the re-emergence 
of anti-Semitism worldwide are an admonishment to us all that even 
lessons as searing and tragic as those taught by the Holocaust can be 
forgotten if we do not remain vigilant in our efforts to remember them.
  As the chairman of the Subcommittee on Africa, I had the unique 
opportunity to visit the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, 
ICTR, in Arusha, Tanzania, earlier this year. There I saw firsthand the 
tremendous progress being made and groundbreaking legal precedents 
being set with regards to genocide being seen by the international 
community as a crime against humanity. The court for Rwanda and the 
court for the former Yugoslavia send a clear message to the world that 
such horrific acts cannot and will not go unpunished. Since I became a 
member of the U.S. Senate, I have strived to make the protection of 
basic human rights and accountability for such atrocities worldwide a 
cornerstone in American foreign policy.
  Today, we remember the Armenian men, women and children who lost 
their lives during that tragic time period in world history, as well as 
the other countless number of past and present victims of 
violence.
  Mr. REED. Madam President, I rise to join my colleagues, my 
fellow Rhode Islanders and our Armenian American community in observing 
the 87th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.
  Although some in the world still want to convince themselves, as well 
as others, that the deaths of so many Armenians was simply a product of 
a civil war, the facts are undeniable: from 1915 to 1923 1,500,000 
Armenians died, and 500,000 refugees were forced to flee. These facts 
must continue to be affirmed. To ignore the Armenian Genocide would be 
to ignore history and therefore allow the preconditions to exist for 
another radical leader to rise and legitimize the future genocide of 
another of the world's people. Let anyone ask: ``who remembers the 
Armenians?'' and the answer would be: Millions in the United States and 
around the world. Today, Rhode Island is among 31 States which have, by 
either resolution or proclamation, recognized the Armenian Genocide.
  At the time of the Armenian Genocide, Europe and the United States 
were too embroiled in the First World War to understand the magnitude 
and consequences of the atrocities being committed and therefore did 
little more than protest by correspondence. Understanding and 
remembrance today ensures that the world will respond appropriately to 
avert these tragedies tomorrow. As proof, we need only look to NATO's 
quick and decisive action to quell the Kosovo crisis.
  We must also recognize that, in addition to the tragedies of the 
past, Armenians continue to suffer from the economic effects of natural 
disaster and the dispute over Nagorno Karabagh. Yet amidst this 
suffering the Armenian people continue to strive to build an 
independent democratic nation of peace in the Caucasus region. So, 
despite crisis elsewhere in the world, we must remain attentive to 
Armenia and the people of Nagorno Karabagh and recognize that 
significant economic assistance now will prove to be an investment with 
long term reward in a region of strategic significance to the United 
States.
  Today while we solemnly commemorate the tragedy of the past, let us 
rededicate ourselves to building a strong and vibrant Armenia for the 
future.

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