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12/28/2004
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WEBSITE AT <;HTTP:// 1) Gomitas Institute Donates Armenian Genocide Books to US Congress Members 2) Armenian Prime Minister Conveys Condolences 3) Saakashvili Tells Armenian Population Integration Necessary 4) Another Gas Poisoning Reported in Armenia 1) Gomitas Institute Donates Armenian Genocide Books to US Congress Members WASHINGTON, DC (Armenpress)--In commemoration of the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the UK-based Gomitas Institute on Armenian Genocide studies has donated 500 copies of its latest publication, United States Official Records on the Armenian Genocide 1915-17, to members of the US Senate and House of Representatives. This initiative was taken at the request of a generous benefactor, and made possible through the support of the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues, as well as the Washington, DC based Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA); the move comes as the incoming 109th Congress faces consideration of the Armenian Genocide Resolution. "With the publication of this volume, the Gomitas Institute has, once again, provided a vital resource for all those working to overcome the Turkish government's shameful campaign to pressure the United States into complicity in Turkey's denial of the Armenian Genocide," said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. "The comprehensive and compelling evidence assembled in this book establishes the US response to the Armenian Genocide as a critical milestone in American history--one that Turkey should not be allowed to erase." United States Official Records on the Armenian Genocide 1915-17 was published by the Gomitas Institute and is the latest book among the expanding resources on the Armenian Genocide, currently utilized by students, scholars, and journalists. "The documents in this book provide a first-hand look at the efforts of US consuls and the American Ambassador in Constantinople to engage the US government in ending the systematic destruction of the Armenian people. Sadly, these efforts were ultimately unsuccessful, the massacres continued, and most Armenians perished as a result. . . It is our hope that this publication will help educate America's leaders and the general public about the Armenian Genocide and the need for the US Congress to enact legislation that recognizes this tragedy as genocide. Finally, we must ensure that the lessons learned from this tragedy are used to prevent future genocides." write Congressmen Frank Pallone and Joseph Knollenberg in their forward of the book. A sister publication, United States Diplomacy on the Bosphorus: The Diaries of Ambassador Morgenthau 1913-1916, will soon be printed. Serving as an invaluable record of the Armenian genocide in all its complexities, the two books reveal to what extent the United States government knew about the Armenian genocide, as early as the summer of 1915. 2) Armenian Prime Minister Conveys Condolences Death Toll in Asian Disaster Approaches 60,000 GALLE (Reuters)--Armenian prime minister Andranik Margarian sent condolences to the prime ministers of Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Thailand, Bangladesh, and India to express Armenia's anguish over the thousands of deaths and the scale of the destruction caused by Sunday's monster tsunami. The sea and wreckage of coastal towns around the Indian Ocean yielded up tens of thousands of bodies on Tuesday, pushing the toll to 60,000. The apocalyptic destruction caused by the ocean surge dwarfed the efforts of governments and relief agencies as they recovered countless corpses while trying to treat survivors and take care of millions of homeless, increasingly threatened by disease amid the rotting remains. Thousands more were injured. The United Nations launched what it called an unprecedented relief effort to assist nations hit by a devastating tsunami triggered by a magnitude 9.0 undersea earthquake off the Indonesian island of Sumatra. In a further threat to the region, disease could kill as many people as those killed by the wall of water, a top World Health Organization (WHO) official said. While grieving families in wrecked coastal towns and resorts buried their loved ones, others, including many foreign tourists, searched for friends and relatives still missing. In Thailand, where thousands of tourists were enjoying a Christmas break to escape the northern winter, many of the country's paradise resorts were turned into graveyards. In Sri Lanka, hundreds of people were killed when a wave crashed into a train, wrecking eight carriages and uprooting the track it was traveling on. The train was called "Sea Queen". Of the overall death toll so far of 59,186, Indonesia has suffered the biggest number of victims, with its Health Ministry reporting 27,174 dead. Nearly all the deaths in Indonesia were in the northwestern province of Aceh at the tip of Sumatra. Rescue crews were still trying to reach cut off areas. Separatist rebels announced a truce while people search for loved ones. Sri Lanka reported around 19,000 dead. India's toll of 11,500 included at least 7,000 on one archipelago, the Andamans and Nicobar. On one island, the surge of water killed two-thirds of the population. Hundreds of others died in the Maldives, Myanmar and Malaysia. The arc of water struck as far as Somalia and Kenya. Fishing villages, ports and resorts were devastated, power and communications cut and homes destroyed. The United Nations said the cost of the damage will reach billions of dollars. The tremor, the biggest in 40 years, ripped a chasm in the sea bed which launched the tsunami, possibly the deadliest in more than 200 years. 3) Saakashvili Tells Armenian Population Integration Necessary JAVAKHK (Civil Georgia)--Georgia's President Mikhail Saakashvili visited Akhalkalak on December 28, a predominately Armenian-populated town in southern Georgian region of Javakhk. In meeting with the local population, President Saakashvili addressed the necessity of integration into Georgia. "Our Armenian population [of Javakhk] is very patriotic, and requires more attention and care. Though you should be integrated, your language and your culture should also be preserved. I know that you face many problems, but we can solve them if we stand together," he said. Saakashvili stressed that the construction on a new highway connecting Tbilisi with Akhalkalak would begin in the coming year, "We have already allocated funds for this project." He also promised scholarships for students willing to continue their education in Tbilisi universities. 4) Another Gas Poisoning Reported in Armenia (AP)--A man and his wife were asphyxiated by a natural gas leak in Armenia, an emergency official said Monday--the fourth such incident this month. The deaths of the couple, aged 59 and 55, brings the death toll from gas leaks and poisonings this year to 16--with 12 in December alone. A spokesman for the emergency situations ministry said neighbors found the two bodies on Sunday at their home in the town of Ashtarak, north of Yerevan. Preliminary information showed that a poorly installed homemade gas heater and an illegal connection to municipal gas pipes were to blame. Many people in the poor ex-Soviet republic use homemade gas heaters, sometimes tapping illegally into gas lines, because their homes lack heaters, which are expensive. All subscription inquiries and changes must be made through the proper carrier and not Asbarez Online. ASBAREZ ONLINE does not transmit address changes and subscription requests. (c) 2004 ASBAREZ ONLINE. All Rights Reserved. ASBAREZ provides this news service to ARMENIAN NEWS NETWORK members for academic research or personal use only and may not be reproduced in or through mass media outlets.