New Jersey Jewish News, NJ
Aug 23 2007
Labeling a genocide
08.23.07
"Expediency" tends to be a dirty word in the human rights field.
Search the word on the Anti-Defamation League’s Web site, and you
find a long list of unkind references to individuals and groups that
ADL has lambasted for putting their political and diplomatic
considerations ahead of doing the right thing.
For weeks the ADL had been on the receiving end of similar criticism
for refusing to use the word "genocide" to describe the 1915-17
massacre of Armenians by the Ottoman empire and for opposing a
proposed congressional resolution that would do so. When the ADL
fired its Boston-area regional director for denouncing the ADL’s
stance, the pressure built on the organization from its regional
leadership and outside Jewish observers.
On Tuesday, the ADL relented – after a fashion. In a dramatic news
release, ADL national director Abraham Foxman said the organization,
in the interest of Jewish unity, would acknowledge the historic
consensus that Armenians suffered genocide. At the same time, he
reiterated the ADL’s opposition to the congressional resolution,
calling it a "counterproductive diversion" that may put at risk "the
important multilateral relationship between Turkey, Israel, and the
United States."
The ADL was faced with an unenviable balancing act, between its
historic commitment to universal human rights and its advocacy for
Israel, which has long nurtured its relationship with Turkey and
their vital strategic and economic agreements. In the past, Foxman
made the compelling case that what was a symbolic gesture for
Armenians might have concrete negative repercussions for Israelis.
But if our premier human rights agency is unable to extend the
lessons of the Holocaust in the matter of acknowledging historic
consensus, then expediency wins over the truth. The ADL statement
allows the Jewish group to debate the congressional resolution as a
political and diplomatic measure, without distorting the historical
record.
Pressure will now build on other Jewish groups to acknowledge the
genocide and extend their hands to Turkey in a way that suggests that
friendships must be built on truth and an ability to disagree. We
pray the Turks reach back.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
