[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 6293-6294]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                    COMMEMORATING ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. JOHN JOSEPH MOAKLEY

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 24, 2001

  Mr. MOAKLEY. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to rise with my colleagues in 
calling for the remembrance of the Armenian Genocide. I remain deeply 
concerned that the United States has not officially recognized this 
tragedy as a genocide, and believe it is time this nation acknowledges 
the truth.
  That truth is told by those who were there. Many Armenians that saw 
the killing, saw the destruction and lived through the persecution, are 
now our neighbors and friends. For years, these brave individuals who 
lost their loved ones have told the painful story of their experience, 
yet it has often fallen on deaf ears. They have told of the day in 
1915--April 24th--when Turkish officials arrested and exiled 200 
Armenian political, intellectual and religious leaders. That terrible 
day started a campaign of terror that would last for eight years, 
resulting in the death of 1.5 million Armenians.
  Today, despite all of our advances, we still see this kind of brutal 
ethnic cleansing in several places around the world. In Kosovo, an 
international military force had to be called in to end ethnic 
cleansing in that tiny province. And across Africa, in places like 
Sierra Leone and the Congo, entire groups of women, children and men 
have literally been wiped out in attempts to control land and 
resources. If we

[[Page 6294]]

are ever to stop such inhumane treatment, we must ensure that we speak 
the truth about the past. We must ensure that our young people hear the 
wrongs that have been committed against humanity, so that they have the 
opportunity to stand firmly for basic human rights as they rise to 
become our leaders.
  As a nation, the United States speaks often about respect for human 
rights. I am proud that we hold such values so close--but until will 
accept the truth about atrocities like the Armenian Genocide we fail to 
reach our goals.

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