[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5417]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                           ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Sweeney) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. SWEENEY. Mr. Speaker, I want to take this opportunity to speak 
about one of the 20th century's early atrocities, the Armenian 
genocide. It is a subject that is very near and dear to my heart as my 
own grandfather was a witness to the bloodshed firsthand.
  While the genocide began well before the turn of the past century, 
April 24 marks an important date that we as citizens and human beings 
need to remember. It was when 254 Armenian intellectuals were arrested 
by Turkish authorities in Istanbul and taken to the provinces of Ayash 
and Chankiri, where many of them were later massacred.
  Throughout the genocide, Turkish authorities ordered the evacuations 
of Armenians out of villages in Turkish Armenia and Asia Minor. As the 
villages were evacuated, men were often shot immediately. Women and 
children were forced to walk limitless distances to the south where, if 
they survived, many were raped and put into concentration camps. 
Prisoners were starved, beaten, and murdered by unmerciful guards.
  This was not a case for everyone, though. Not everyone was sent to 
concentration camps. For example, many innocent people were put on 
ships and then thrown overboard into the Black Sea.
  The atrocities of the Armenian genocide were still being carried out 
in 1921 when Kemalists were found abusing and starving prisoners to 
death. In total, approximately 1.5 million Armenians were killed in a 
28-year period. This does not include the half million or more who were 
forced to leave their homes and flee to foreign countries.
  Together with Armenians all over the world and people of conscience, 
I would like to honor those who lost their homes, their freedom, and 
their lives during this dark period.
  Many survivors of the genocide came to the United States seeking a 
new beginning, my grandfather among them. The experiences of his 
childhood fueled his desire for freedom for his Armenian homeland in 
the First World War, so he returned there, where he was awarded two 
Russian Medals of Honor for bravery in the fight against fascism.
  It is important that we not forget about these terrible atrocities, 
because as Winston Churchill said, those who do not learn from the past 
are destined to repeat it.
  Since the atrocity, Armenia has taken great strides, achieving its 
independence over 8 years ago. Then it was a captive Nation struggling 
to preserve its centuries-old traditions and customs. Today the 
Republic of Armenia is an independent, freedom-loving Nation and a 
friend of the United States and to the democratic world.
  Monday, April 24, will mark the 85th anniversary of one of the most 
gruesome human atrocities in the 20th century. Sadly, it was the 
systematic killing of 1.5 million Armenian men and women. Ironically, 
Mr. Speaker, it was none other than Adolph Hitler who began to 
immortalize the Armenian atrocities when he, questioning those who were 
questioning his own determination to commit his own atrocities and his 
own genocide, he said, After all, who will remember the Armenians?
  As we do not ignore the occurrence of the Nazi Holocaust, we must not 
ignore the Armenian genocide. Many people across the world will concede 
this is a very tender and difficult event to discuss, but in order for 
us to discontinue the mistakes of the past we must never forget it 
happened, and we must never stop speaking out against such horrors.
  As a strong and fervent supporter of the Republic of Armenia, I am 
alarmed that the Turkish government is still refusing to acknowledge 
what happened and instead is attempting to rewrite history. It is vital 
that we do not let political agendas get in the way of doing what is 
right.
  Mr. Speaker, I call upon the Turkish government to accept complete 
accountability for the Armenian genocide. To heal the wounds of the 
past, the Turkish government must first recognize its responsibility 
for the actions of past leaders. Nothing we can do or say will bring 
back those who perished, but we can honor those who lost their homes, 
their freedom, their lives, by teaching future generations the lessons 
of this atrocity.

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