[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 66 (Thursday, April 24, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E729]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               93RD ANNIVERSARY OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

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                             HON. JIM COSTA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 24, 2008

  Mr. COSTA. Madam Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the 93rd 
anniversary of the start of the Armenian genocide, which was the first 
genocide of the 20th century and sadly, the template for a cycle of 
genocide that continues to this very day.
  It is, by any reasonable standard, established history that between 
1915 and 1923 the Ottoman Empire systematically killed an estimated 1.5 
million Armenians and drove hundreds of thousands of others into exile 
from their ancestral homeland. The record of this atrocity is well 
documented in the United States Archives and has been universally 
accepted in the International Association of Genocide Scholars and the 
broader historical and academic communities.
  However, there is still debate around the world, including here in 
our Nation, on whether this incident actually qualifies as genocide. On 
April 26, 1915, the New York Times reported on the first reported 
purges of Armenians in Ottoman Turkey. Later in 1915, the Times ran a 
front page article about a report from the Committee on Armenian 
Atrocities discussing exactly what was happening to Armenians in 
Turkey. ``The report tells of children under 15 years of age thrown 
into the Euphrates to be drowned; of women forced to desert infants in 
their arms and to leave them by the roadside to die; of young women and 
girls appropriated by the Turks, thrown into harems, attacked or else 
sold to the highest bidder, and of men murdered and tortured.''
  One can debate specific historical incidents, but growing up in 
Fresno, California, the land of William Saroyan, I heard stories shared 
by grandparents from the Kezerian, Koligian and Abramhian families 
about being forced to leave their homes, the stories of the long 
marches, and the random murders. Clearly, they believed there was a 
systematic approach to eliminate the Armenian communities in places 
that had been their homes and farms for centuries. My Armenian friends 
believe this systematic approach was among the first genocides of the 
20th century, and so do I.
  Around the world, in the single, longest lasting and far-reaching 
campaign of genocide denial, Turkey seeks to block recognition of this 
travesty. It's against the law to even mention the Armenian genocide in 
Turkey. The Armenian Genocide involved the issue of man's injustice to 
mankind, and it continued to occur throughout the 20th century in the 
Holocaust, Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, and now in Darfur. As leaders, we 
must confront this and not allow Turkey to continue to stand alone and 
ask us to believe that the Armenian genocide was not genocide.
  In standing up to this policy of denial, we, of course, honor the 
martyrs of the genocide and we encourage our Turkish allies and friends 
to come to terms with their past. And, in a very powerful and 
significant way, we reinforce our own vital role, as Americans, in 
leading the international community toward unconditional opposition to 
all instances of genocide.
  Last October, the House Foreign Affairs Committee passed H. Res. 106, 
a resolution to recognize the Armenian genocide in the United States. 
Unfortunately, this bill has yet to come before the full House for a 
vote. Supporters of this resolution are constantly told that now isn't 
the time to recognize the genocide, that scholars, not Congress, should 
determine if this event was genocide, or that passage of this 
resolution will hurt our relationship with Turkey. I could not disagree 
more with these statements.
  First, there is never a ``right time'' to recognize genocide. Ninety-
three years have passed since the start events occurred, and we cannot 
wait around for a convenient moment to recognize this truly 
catastrophic historical event. Secondly, the scholars have spoken and 
the historical record is clear and thoroughly documented. And finally, 
we have seen over and over again that Turkey's warning of disastrous 
consequences are dramatically overstated. In fact, in nearly every 
instance, Turkey's bilateral trade has gone up with each of the 
countries that have recognized the Armenian genocide--including Canada, 
Italy, France, Russia, and Belgium.
  Genocide is not something that can simply be swept under the rug and 
forgotten. We need leaders around the world to not only recognize it, 
but to condemn it so the world can truly say, ``Never Again.'' The 
United States cannot continue its policy of denial regarding the 
Armenian genocide, and I encourage passage of H. Res. 106 to recognize 
the Armenian genocide in our Nation.

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