Month: April 2010

OSCE MISSION TO OBSERVE BORDER CLOSE TO BERKABER VILLAGE

Aysor
March 31 2010
Armenia

Today, March 31, the OSCE mission is planning a regular scheduled
observation at Armenia-Azerbaijan border close to Berkaber village
of Ijevan region of Tavush province of Armenia.

The Nagorno-Karabakh (armed) conflict broke out back in 1991, when,
subsequent to the demand for self-determination of the Nagorno-Karabakh
people, Azerbaijani authorities attempted to resolve the issue
through ethnic cleansings, carried out by Soviet security forces
(KGB special units) under the pretext of the implementation of the
passport regime and by launching of large-scale military operations,
which left thousands dead and caused considerable material damage. A
cease-fire agreement was established in 1994.

Negotiations on the settlement of the conflict are being conducted
under the mediation of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmen (Russia,
USA, France) and on the basis of their Madrid proposals, presented
in November, 2007.

Azerbaijan has not yet implemented the 4 resolutions of the UN
Security Council adopted in 1993, by continuing to provoke arms race
in the region and openly violating on of the basic principles of the
international law non-use of force or threat of force.

BAKO SAHAKYAN HAD A MEETING WITH HARUT SASUNYAN

Aysor
March 31 2010
Armenia

On 30 March President of the Artsakh Republic Bako Sahakyan met
president of the United Armenian Fund, vice-chairman of the Lincy
Foundation Harut Sassounian.

Issues related to developing socio-economic spheres of Artsakh as
well as widening and deepening ties between the Motherland and the
Diaspora were discussed during the meeting.

The Head of the State rated high the role of the United Armenian
Fund in realizing different programs, building social objects and
educational hearths, as well as making Artsakh recognizable to the
outer world.

US ‘STRONGLY COMMITTED’ TO KARABAKH SOLUTION

news.az
March 31 2010
Azerbaijan

Donald Lu The US chargé d’affaires in Baku has said that the USA
sees talks as the only solution to the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict
over Nagorno-Karabakh.

‘The US is strongly committed to the resolution of the Karabakh
conflict. We see no alternative to the negotiations, we believe in a
peaceful solution of this conflict. These negotiations will require
political will from the leaders of both countries,’ Donald Lu told
journalists yesterday.

He said that the people of Azerbaijan should know that the leadership
of his country, the president and the secretary of state were committed
to a resolution.

Commenting on the long awaited appointment of a new US ambassador to
Azerbaijan, the chargé d’affaires said the new appointee would be
someone experienced and highly skilled in diplomacy.

‘This ambassador is worth waiting for,’ Donald Lu said. ‘The relations
between the US and Azerbaijan are very strong and the US has a profound
interest in Azerbaijan. I would like to remind you that the deputy
secretary has visited Baku, members of Congress visit Azerbaijan,
we have the military visiting here. We hope that we will soon have
an ambassador here. As you may know, our system in the US is very
complicated. Many countries around the world do not have an American
ambassador yet, many important countries including Azerbaijan. It is
not a reflection of our relations with Azerbaijan, it is a reflection
of the bureaucracy in the US. We hope that the new ambassador will
come soon.’

The USA has had no ambassador in Baku since the departure of the last
incumbent, Anne Derse, in July 2009.

EXPERIENCES AS AN ARMENIAN WOMAN: INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S MONTH
By Marine Mikayelyan

ianyan magazine

March 31 2010

Have you ever been asked, "If you had the chance to be reborn, what
ethnicity would you choose to be?" A pressing question like the one
Hamlet asked himself, "To be or not to be?" An automatic reaction to
this sort of a question prompts one to excavate through the former
files of their life to sort out the good and bad experiences of their
present ethnicity.

I, born an Armenian, occasionally find myself pondering this question,
especially because I am a woman. I emphasize my gender because I
believe it makes a difference in certain ethnicities. Therefore,
I, as an Armenian woman, consider the pros and cons of being born a
woman of Armenian descent. On this journey to answer such an impeding
question, I do hope to come to a certain realization.

Sometimes it is easier to look at the cup half empty, and so I will
start off this journey by giving a generalized synopsis of the cons
of being an Armenian woman. For instance, being an Armenian woman
comes with the responsibility, for the most part, of keeping up your
reputation. I am sure most Armenian woman have heard the warning that
it is "amot" (or shameful) to engage with the opposite sex frivolously
unless they are going to make it official by an engagement followed
by a wedding.

Armenian woman also should not be with an "odar" (someone outside
their ethnicity). It is still evident to this day that when you do
get married, that you are the "hars" (bride or daughter-in-law)
in the house and expected to be modest and keep your opinions to
yourself or worse- be completely deprived of them. You’re expected
to immediately have babies, cook as an iron chef, clean like you’re
Cinderella, and cater to the needs of your husband with all the while
feeling like this is what you’ve dreamed of your entire life.

A dress code also exists in the minds of Armenian people, mainly
dictating the length of your dress and the depth of your cleavage;
not to be too short and not be too deep. Your career choice can
be difficult considering you are expected to be a good mother and
a homemaker.

On top of all this, you’re also subjected to negative connotations
and exaggerations that spread like fire within the Armenian community.

This in turn all goes back to maintaining an acceptable reputation.

The choices you make in life are not solely based on what can be
good for you and make you happy but involve how they can impact your
immediate and sometimes extended family. As a woman, you have a lot
of different things to consider and worry about, especially if you
come from a more traditional family. I am sure some can relate to
having the thought cross their minds that it would be much easier to
be an American or even a man.

As a woman, you are expected to do it all and do it well. Falling
short of expectations puts great guilt upon your conscience. It is
like a programmed chip implanted in our brain from birth to feel
guilty about the smallest things. Even worse, the opposite sex does
not hold back to stimulate this so called chip.

Of course, wherever there is a cup half empty, there’s also a cup
that can be half full.

The Armenian woman, as I see it, is resilient despite the tug of
war that goes on between herself and traditional expectations of
her. I find that many are gifted nurturers and normally talented in
the cooking department, which makes me wonder if this can, perhaps,
be what underlines the ease of acquiring the role of a "hars."

Despite the typical expectations laid down by ancestors that is
still practiced today, I have seen many Armenian women defeat the
traditional obstacles, against all odds, and embrace their individual
identities. Nowadays, the Armenian woman is both a career woman and
a homemaker. Her ability to achieve success in all aspects of her
life without the worry of being disproved by her fellow Armenians
is reality. This is not to say that the Armenian woman is going to
extremes where she is rebelling against tradition, but there is more
open mindedness and she is becoming more fearless in standing up for
what she believes in and embracing her self identity. I am witnessing
more and more Armenian women define their own identity.

My late grandfather once advised me, "Be a manly woman". At first,
I thought, "Does he want me to gain more muscles?" As time went by I
realized he was telling me to be a woman that is not like a sheep;
to set goals and to achieve them with confidence. It is apparent
to me that most Armenian women do not want to be typical nor fall
victim under the stereotype of the above described cons, and have
been active towards positive change. Our ambitions are stepping ahead
of the limits set forth to define us. The traditional Armenian woman
survives in us while we break free of stereotypes.

We, as women, have come a long way to gain status. It is only harder
if you come from a traditional background.

I am proud of the Armenian woman.

if I were to be reborn I would be none other than an Armenian woman,
despite the frustrations felt when there’s judgment and double
standards, towards the female gender of this ethnicity. I feel it
makes life more interesting to have such complications, so I embrace
it. Well, to be or not to be? Yes, I will be, as I am.

AN EASTER MEAL FROM ARMENIA
By Patrice Stewart

The Decatur Daily
March 31 2010

Anoush Place cooks with beets, cauliflower, pomegranates, fish,
rice and, of course, eggs

Pomegranates, beets, cauliflower, rice and golden raisins and tilapia
flavored with rosemary were part of a pre-Easter meal prepared last
week by Anoush Place.

Her mother, Yelena Hovhannisyan of Armenia, is visiting Anoush and
Tom Place and their two daughters in Decatur. His mother, Marjorie
Alexander of Decatur, joined Yelena and Anoush for this lunchtime
feast.

Anoush, who learned a lot about cooking from her mom while growing
up in Armenia, emphasizes healthy dishes at her table.

"These fish and rice dishes are part of a typical Easter meal in
Armenia, but we cook the fish in different ways, depending on what
people want," she said.

Anoush grew up with the Apostolic Orthodox faith.

"I come from a country that was the first to adopt Christianity as
its religion," she said, acknowledging that there were some strict
rules about food. In Decatur, she attends First United Methodist
Church with her family.

Their daughters are now 12 and 14, but when they were younger, she
carried on the Armenian tradition of having an "egg fight." Each would
hold an egg in their hand and try to hit and break the other’s egg.

Whoever’s egg broke first was the loser.

"We also hard-boiled eggs and dyed them different colors and ate
them with the Easter meal," she said, in following an Armenian custom
similar to those here.

Anoush likes to use pomegranates, so she is pleased that others are
becoming more familiar with them.

Popular pomegranates

"Right now, pomegranate is a popular food in America," she said,
"because people finally realized how healthy it is."

She buys pomegranates when they are in season in December and other
winter months and stores them whole in the refrigerator to use
all year.

"They stay pretty good for a while," she said.

She stockpiles many basics for her type of healthy cooking. That way,
she can use the red-colored pomegranate fruit to blend with beets
for an unusual salad that includes chopped nuts and sour cream.

"Not many people know about this salad," Anoush said.

Her pomegranate and beet salad was adorned with a hard-boiled egg
wearing a radish-top hat and served on a bed of lettuce leaves.

While the beets were used to create the salad, she removed the leaves
from the tops of the beets, cooked them and added some sautéed onion
to make another deep-color dish for her table.

"I’m 85 and have eaten in every state in this union, but I have never
tasted the tops of beets before," said her mother-in-law.

When she is cooking beets for her dishes, Anoush saves the water they
are cooked in for its nutritional value.

"The water from the beets is very healthy because of the antioxidants,
so we usually drink that plain, or mix it with other juices," she said.

She also makes a cool summer tea with mint from her yard, sugar
and water.

She has a favorite store in California that carries a pomegranate
sauce she likes, and other sauces are available on the Internet and
at specialty stores.

"I use a lot of pomegranate sauce," said Anoush.

Armenians use this sauce for fish and barbecue, she explained. For her
fish entrée, she covered whole tilapia with olive oil and added some
rosemary from her garden, along with the purchased pomegranate sauce,
and baked it in foil.

"My horoscope sign is Pisces," Anoush said, so the tilapia with
pomegranate sauce and rosemary seems a logical — and healthy —
way to eat.

She also had one traditional way to eat pomegranate, because she kept
a bowl of chocolate-covered pomegranate candy on her dining table,
which was dressed for the Easter season with spring flowers and
decorated eggs. Pistachios adorned her fish dish.

Getting plenty of veggies and fruits is important to Anoush, so she
often prepares cauliflower dishes and works golden raisins into her
rice pilaf, along with using pomegranates and beets.

"Nobody cooks cauliflower in America; they just steam it. So I’m
introducing you to a new way to cook this," she said.

Her technique is to dip pieces in egg before frying it in oil. She
also likes to add a bit of cilantro to this and other dishes.

While she often bakes her own breads, for this meal she served German
whole rye bread she found at Aldi.

Here are directions for preparing some of Anoush’s favorite Easter
season dishes:

Beet leaves with onions

Wash the beets and leaves and cut the top leafy part off; save the
beets for another use. In a skillet, put just a little water (because
beets already have a lot of water in them) and cook them for about
20 minutes. Then sauté onion in olive oil and add it to the beets.

To make a sauce to serve in a dish to top the beet leaves and onions,
she uses homemade yogurt with a little garlic.

Beet-pomegranate salad

Cook the bottom part of the beets (one bunch may be enough, but it
depends on the size of the beets and how many you want to feed) in
a pot on top of stove in water for 30 to 40 minutes. If you slice
them, they will cook even faster. Then dice the beets with a knife
and mix them with the pomegranate, chopped pecans or walnuts, sour
cream and salt.

Most people buy beets in cans, Anoush said, so you can estimate the
amounts needed that way: 1 can beets, 1 regular size pomegranate and
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts. Mix that with a little salt and
sour cream.

Cauliflower with egg

Cut cauliflower into pieces that will lay as flat as possible for
cooking. Dip them in beaten egg and fry in a hot skillet in cooking
oil for about two minutes on each side, or until cauliflower turns
golden yellow shade. Place cauliflower on a serving platter and cover
with cilantro type parsley and a bit of garlic.

Pilaf with golden raisins

This simple dish can be made with rice cooked either in a rice cooker
or on the stovetop.

Use regular rice, not the Minute variety. Put some butter in a pan
and when it melts, add golden raisins. Let them plump up for a couple
of minutes and then add them to the rice and serve.

Tilapia with pomegranate sauce and rosemary

Purchase fresh tilapia at a supermarket fish counter. Use the whole
fish, covering it with olive oil, sprigs of fresh rosemary and a
pomegranate sauce (available in some specialty stores and via the
Internet). Wrap fish in foil and bake about 40 minutes.

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ARMENIAN PRESIDENT FACES TOUGH CHOICE BETWEEN POLITICAL SUICIDE AND CONCRETE CONCESSIONS

Today
March 31 2010
Azerbaijan

"Political language is necessary to make a lie sound true, to make
killing look respectable and to grab the air with one’s own hands."

This aphorism by English writer and essayist George Orwell has
apparently become very relevant in the Armenian political beau monde.

The fact that talks about Armenian ex-President Robert Kocharian’s
political comeback top media reports is case and point.

Inexhaustible theme

Armenia’s socioeconomic situation is simply catastrophic with a
tendency to deteriorate further.

The decline of the Armenian economy was over 30 percent at the
dollar calculation this year. Naturally, all this will lead to a
further rise in prices on all types of goods, a devaluation of the
dram and a dramatic reduction in the already low purchasing power of
the Armenian population.

Practices related to democracy, freedom of speech and thought are
far from the minimum requirements. The oligopoly continues to hold
all the power in the country, which thwarts the attempts of dissents
and threatens its own rule.

And, finally, Armenia’s foreign policy has suffered a crash. And the
most striking proof of this is what the country has achieved from
the normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations.

Armenia gained a clear expression of Turkey’s position, which
reiterated that it is impossible to normalize ties with Armenia without
Armenia’s withdrawal from all occupied territories of Azerbaijan,
emphasized the need for an early settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, demonstrated Azerbaijan’s increased
credibility and influence in the region and the world, showed the
distrust toward Armenia as a negotiator and, finally, questioned the
fate of tens of thousands of illegal Armenians working in Turkey
with the further threat of closing air communications between the
two countries.

Further attempts to hide the truth about the Armenian economy are
equal to trying to grab the air with one’s own hands. So, there is
nothing surprising about the renewed talks about Kocharian’s return
to politics. What is the reason behind mainstreaming this idea? There
are several possible scenarios.

Real threat or another farce?

The first scenario is that being aware of all the possible consequences
of the further deterioration of the socioeconomic and political
situation in Armenia, Yerevan is ready to make major concessions
in the settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in an interview
with CNN said there has been rapid progress in the process of solving
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. It should also be noted that in an
interview with German Die Zeit, Prime Minister Erdogan also said:
"Turkey will not open its border with Armenia until Armenia leaves
Azerbaijan’s territories."

In other words, it seems that Armenia would have to make steps, very
disadvantageous from the viewpoint of the Armenian nationalists,
in the settlement of Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Under these conditions it is quite timely from the viewpoint of
the Armenian nationalists to bring Kocharian’s comeback into the
mainstream. By the way, the former president has already criticized
the current Armenian authorities.

Thus, it seems that Kocharian is being presented to Armenia and the
international community as a club, which could hit President Serzh
Sargsyan over the head when he begins to take concrete steps to
resolve the Armenian -Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Worthy of note is that the leader of the Prosperous Armenia party
and oligarch Gagik Tsarukyan and ex-Foreign Minister, Sivilitas
Foundation Chairman Vartan Oskanian made similar statements almost
simultaneously with Kocharyan, who condemned the current economic
policy of the Armenian authorities.

These statements voiced by people close to Kocharian discredited
Sargsyan, who is responsible for the poor economic situation in the
country and his failing foreign policy. Recently, Armenian media
reported that Defense Minister Seyran Ohanian wrote a resignation
letter and sent it to the president’s residence.

For his close aides he motivated his resignation by Sargsyan’s
compliant policy on the Karabakh issue. After receiving the minister’s
resignation, Sargsyan summoned Ohanian and had an almost six-hour
conversation with him. Then Ohanian withdrew his resignation and
returned to work.

All this shows that the current Armenian president is actually being
forced to make major concessions in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,
and Ohanian is ready to support the forces opposed to the Armenian
president once this happens. And this is very serious. Given
Tsarukian’s and Ohanian’s opportunities, there are strong reasons
to predict even more pressure on Sargsyan due to the speculation
about Kocharian’s return to power. Moreover, the history of the
Sargsyan-Kocharian standoff has lasted more than a year.

In particular, Sargsyan defeated Kocharian once in the last
parliamentary elections. Back then, Prosperous Armenia, hastily set up
by Kocharian, was crushed and had no option but to become a younger
and less meaningful partner for the dominating Republicans. Later,
the bloody March events ensued and became a symbol of Sargsyan’s
presidency. The whole world saw the scale of the fraud and bloody
suppression of dissent in Armenia. It was Kocharian’s response to
the current president who cannot escape the stigma of a dictator and
a politician who came to power by spilling the blood of his own people.

Will there be a new bloodshed in Armenia? Kocharian has repeatedly
showed that he can resort to the bloodletting of his own people for
the sake of quenching his own political ambitions. So, it all depends
on what Sargsyan’s next actions will be.

Bloodshed in Armenia is not beneficial for Azerbaijan at all since any
destabilization of the situation in the country is fraught curtailing
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict negotiation process, in which the current
Armenian president appears to be ready to make concrete concessions.

Precisely because of this, there is reason to consider a second version
of the events on Kocharian’s return to power. Maybe the bitter rivals
Sargsyan and Kocharyan are staging this farce in a bid to break down
the talks to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

That Sargsyan has run out of formal arguments to delay Armenia’s
response to the updated Madrid principles corroborates this assertion.

At this point, there is the threat of Kocharian’s return to power,
followed by the destabilization of the political situation in Armenia
and his rejection of the normalization of the Armenian-Turkish dialogue
and any real steps to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Of course, Kocharian has every opportunity to personally voice
dissatisfaction with the actions of the current government to Sargsyan
himself and other members of the government, but not through the
media. So, it is possible that this is a game for the foreign audience
for the most part.

Sargsyan is not interested and strongly opposes Kocharian’s return to
power in any form including as prime minister because he understands
that his consent for a Kocharian comeback would be tantamount to
political suicide.

The specifics of the situation in Armenia show that the lives of
ordinary citizens will not improve regardless of whether Kocharian
returns to politics. They will continue to live in the country,
struggle for survival and be consumable in the hands of their own
rulers, regardless of the name and surname of their leader. These
rulers have long established the basic rule of life in the country.

This rule is consonant with another Orwellian maxim, according to
which all animals are equal but some animals are a bit more equal
than others.

A. Hasanov Day.Az writer

URL:

LIVING TOGETHER IN PEACE

Indiana Daily Student
March 31 2010
IN

Ali Sarihan is a graduate student in the School of Public and
Environmental Affairs and a native of Turkey.

When a person kills anybody, the murderer should be punished by
authority because of the crime. It is necessary for a peaceful and
just society that people know committing a crime will lead to some
sanctions. However, if the crime includes some unclear aspects,
nobody should be punished without clarifying all aspects of the crime.

Moreover, without clarifying unclear points, nobody should be accused.

Doing that is a big mistake, and the mistake might cause other
mistakes.

For decades, the Armenian diaspora has demanded that Turkey acknowledge
the genocide of 1.5 million Armenians at the hands of Ottoman Turks
between 1915 and 1922, that Turkey give soil to Armenia from the
eastern part of Turkey and that Turkey pay indemnity to Armenia for
the unacceptable behavior. In fact, even though they know the claims
are unacceptable for Turkey and that Turkey will never accept the
claims, they continue to make the claims insistently.

Turkey will not accept since it denies responsibility for the genocide.

Turkey claims Armenians lived happily and in safety under Ottoman rule
until World War I but alleges that while the Ottomans were fighting
the Allied Powers (including Russia), the Armenians helped Russia in
order to establish their country in the eastern part of Turkey. Turkey
further claims Armenians killed thousands of innocent Turks in the
process and that the guilt lies with the Armenians.

There is a deadlock between Turkey and Armenia since both nations
think the opposite side is absolutely guilty.

Why do we hate each other when living as brother and sister is
possible?

Armenia has many problems, particularly economic and social problems.

I do not blame Turkey for the poor conditions because Armenia has been
accusing Turkey as a murderer despite its need of Turkey’s friendship;
the Armenian diaspora continues to make accusations despite Armenia’s
problems. The diaspora should try to solve Armenians’ problems instead
of improving its position among Armenians.

On the other hand, Turkey should not punish all Armenians due to the
actions of the diaspora. Turkey should help Armenia for Armenians’
welfare. However, this does not mean accepting any and all accusations.

Overall, all Turks and Armenians should try to better understand each
other. They should not accuse each other. They should live without
any bias and accusation.

Historians should research the events of the late 1910s and early
1920s to determine what happened. Although Armenians and Turks killed
each other, our ancestors’ actions should not prevent progress.

Since the two nations are not currently attacking each other, they
are innocent. This is not to dismiss the history between the two
peoples but to emphasize current generations’ welfare.

I believe Armenians and Turks desire to live together as brothers and
as sisters. Ancestors’ mistakes should not prevent current generations’
relations from improving.

?id=74762

CHANCELLOR MERKEL VISITS TURKEY

Turkish Press
March 31 2010

Chancellor Merkel’s first stop will be a visit to Ataturk’s Mausoleum,
after which she will meet Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and
President Abdullah Gul.

Following her contacts in Ankara, Chancellor Merkel will move on to
Istanbul to attend the Turkish-German business forum.

Turkey’s EU bid will dominate the agenda of Chancellor Merkel’s visit.

Ahead of the trip, Merkel sent messages to Turkey through the media.

Merkel reiterated the option of "privileged partnership" and stated
her opposition to opening Turkish high schools in Germany.

Turkey’s reaction to these statements came pretty quick.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan noted that is German high school in
Turkey and that they will give a huge property in Beykoz for Germany’s
university requests.

Erdogan said "I don’t understand the reason of their hatred and grudge
against Turkey. I wouldn’t expect this attitude from Merkel. I will
share my opinions with her. Turkey is not a whipping boy."

Another issue waiting to be resolved between Turkey and Germany is
the visa-free travel problem.

Fight against terrorism, Cyprus, normalization of relations between
Turkey and Armenia, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Iran’s nuclear program
are other important topics in the agenda.

STEINBERG EXPECTS TAN’S RETURN

Turkish Press
March 30 2010

James Steinberg said that Namik Tan is a well-respected ambassador
in the US and they expect he will return to Washington.

In his press conference evaluating his visit to Balkans and Asian
countries, Steinberg answered a question by a journalist regarding
his country’s attitude towards the Armenian bill and Turkish-American
relations afterwards.

Reminding that he expressed his views on Tan’s return to Washington
before, Steinberg pointed out that US is in close dialogues with her
partner Turkey.

Off the Armenian bill, Steinberg said their stance against the bill
is and will be clear after Turkish side made her concerns public
about the voting of bill in the House of Representatives.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

OPEN FORUM: THE RIGHT TIME TO CONDEMN GENOCIDE
By Roxanne Makasdjian

San Francisco Chronicle
March 30 2010

A recent vote in a congressional committee to simply reaffirm America’s
stand against genocide became, instead, a legislative referendum on
a broader fundamental question: Who decides when the United States
speaks about genocide?

Earlier this month, the House Foreign Affairs Committee considered
a resolution calling on the president to properly characterize the
Ottoman Turkish government’s centrally planned and systematically
executed campaign of race extermination against the Armenian
people from 1915-1923 as "genocide" and to ensure that U.S. foreign
policymakers put the lessons of this crime to work in preventing
future atrocities.

The decision should have been easy enough. The International
Association of Genocide Scholars, the pre-eminent group of independent
scholars who have studied the matter, is on record in support of
congressional affirmation. Our own U.S. archives are replete with
eyewitness testimonies by U.S Foreign Service officers stationed
in the Ottoman Empire at the time. U.S. Ambassador Henry Morgenthau
referred to the mass murder of 1.5 million Armenians as a "campaign
of race extermination."

The U.S. House of Representatives has passed similar legislation
honoring the victims and survivors of the Armenian Genocide in 1975
and 1984, and the House Foreign Affairs Committee passed similar
measures in 2000, 2005 and 2007. Yet despite these resolutions,
today’s committee spent almost six hours debating the measure, and
approved it by only one vote.

So what was it that forced the vote to be so close? What prompted the
Obama administration’s last-minute opposition, even though as senators
and candidates, Barack Obama, Joe Biden and Hillary Rodham Clinton
had all — repeatedly — called for Armenian Genocide recognition?

The answer is both sad and clear: foreign intervention in the U.S.

political process in the form of outright bullying by the Turkish
government. Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, his Foreign
Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, and their multimillion-dollar Washington,
D.C., lobbyists, including former House Speaker Dennis Hastert and
former Majority Leader Dick Gephardt, led a full-blown offensive
against the measure. Along the way, Ankara, using its purchasing
power, blackmailed a number of profit-hungry but ethically challenged
corporate and defense firms into supporting its shameful campaign to
cover up the Armenian Genocide.

In the wake of the U.S. House panel’s vote, Turkey withdrew its
ambassador and threw what amounts to a diplomatic temper tantrum – very
loud, but not very lasting. They did so again, less than a week later,
when Sweden’s Parliament voted to recognize the Armenian Genocide. In
fact, Prime Minister Erdogan went so far as to threaten the impending
deportation of some 100,000 Armenians currently in Turkey — a chilling
reminder of their Ottoman forefathers’ genocidal campaign.

Thankfully, Chairman Howard Berman and the House Foreign Affairs
Committee he leads refused to give in to Turkey’s threats, joining
more than 20 other countries, including 11 of Turkey’s NATO allies,
which have recognized the Armenian Genocide.

The supporters of the Armenian Genocide resolution understand that
bowing to Ankara’s threats today only helps perpetuate the denial
and the diplomatic bullying, and opens the door to similar pressures
tomorrow to deny other genocides.

Here in San Francisco, we know the answer. Each year, our Board of
Supervisors and I pass a resolution affirming the Armenian Genocide
and calling on Congress to end U.S. complicity in Turkey’s genocide
denial. It’s time for Congress — led by our own Speaker of the
House Nancy Pelosi — to finally stand up to Ankara’s bullying and
do the same.

Roxanne Makasdjian is the chairwoman of the Armenian National Committee
of the San Francisco Bay Area.

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