Author: Chalian Meline

Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel. (202) 775-1918
Fax. (202) 775-5648
Email [email protected]
Internet

PRESS RELEASE
April 9, 2007
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918

ANCA CRITICIZES TURKEY FOR BLOCKING
U.N. EXHIBIT ON THE RWANDA GENOCIDE

— Turkey’s Campaign to Deny the Armenian Genocide Prevents
Opening of Educational Exhibit on the Rwanda Genocide

WASHINGTON, DC – The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA)
today sharply condemned the Turkish government for blocking the
opening of a United Nations exhibit on the Rwanda Genocide due to
an indirect mention of the Armenian Genocide in one of the
exhibit’s display panels.

"Sadly, this is only the most recent example of how Turkey’s
campaign to deny the Armenian Genocide perpetuates the cycle of
genocide – making the world a more dangerous place and future
genocides more likely," said ANCA Executive Director Aram
Hamparian.

The Associate Press reported earlier today that the United Nations,
bowing to Turkish protests, has delayed the opening of the exhibit,
organized by the Aegis Trust, in the international organization’s
highly trafficked visitor’s lobby. The Turkish mission had
specifically registered its objections to a reference in the
exhibit concerning the origin of the word "genocide," which
mentioned that Raphael Lemkin, the international lawyer and human
rights activist who coined this term, was influenced by the crimes
committed against the Armenians and other mass killings.

Commenting on the exhibit’s postponement, James Smith, the chief
executive of the British-based Aegis Trust, said, "If we can’t get
this right, it undermines all the values of the U.N. It undermines
everything the U.N. is meant to stand for in terms of preventing
(genocide). . . You can’t learn the lessons from history if you’re
going to sweep all of that history under the carpet. And what about
accountability? What about ending impunity if you’re going to hide
part of the truth? It makes a mockery of all of this."

The full text of the Associate Press article is provided below.

#####

UN exhibition postponed after Turkey objects to reference to
Armenians

The Associated Press
Monday, April 9, 2007

UNITED NATIONS: A U.N. exhibition on the 1994 Rwanda genocide,
scheduled to be opened Monday by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, has
been postponed because of Turkish objections to a reference to the
murder of a million Armenians in Turkey during World War I.

James Smith, chief executive of the British-based Aegis Trust,
which works to prevent genocide and helped organize the photo
exhibition, said the U.N. Department of Public Information approved
the contents and it was put up on Thursday.

A Turkish diplomat complained about the reference to the Armenian
murders, he said, and Armenia’s U.N. Ambassador Armen Martirosyan
went to see the new Undersecretary for Public Information Kiyotaka
Akasaka and they agreed to remove the words "in Turkey."

Martirosyan said Akasaka invited him to the exhibition’s opening,
but late Sunday "I was informed that the opening would be
postponed, or delayed, or even canceled." He blamed Turkish
"censorship" and the country’s refusal "to come to terms with their
own history."

On Monday, the exhibition in the visitor’s lobby had been turned
around so it could not be seen by the public. Smith said he was
still hoping for a diplomatic solution to the dispute.

"We are very disappointed about it because for us, this was meant
to be about the Rwandan genocide, and the lessons from the Rwandan
genocide," and to engage the secretary-general on the pledge by
world leaders to protect civilians from genocide, war crimes and
ethnic cleansing, which Smith said was not happening in Sudan’s
conflict-wracked Darfur region.

U.N. associate spokesman Farhan Haq confirmed Turkey complained
about the exhibition, but he said "the basic concern" was that the
review process for U.N. exhibitions, which takes into account "all
positions," was not followed. He said there were other concerns
which he refused to disclose.

"The exhibition has been postponed until the regular review process
is completed," Haq said.

Smith told The Associated Press the exhibition refers to the
Armenian murders to help explain the word "genocide," which was
coined by Raphael Lemkin, a lawyer of Polish-Jewish descent. Lemkin
was inspired by what happened to the Armenians and other mass
killings, and campaigned in the League of Nations – the precursor
of the United Nations – against what he called "barbarity" and
"vandalism."

Historians estimate up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks around the time of World War I, an event widely
viewed by genocide scholars as the first genocide of the 20th
century. Turkey, however, denies the deaths constituted genocide,
saying that the toll has been inflated and that those killed were
victims of civil war and unrest.

Smith said a small panel on Lemkin in the exhibit "says that during
World War I a million Armenians were murdered in Turkey." It goes
on to explain that Lemkin first used the word genocide in 1943, and
then focuses on the Rwanda genocide, lessons from it, and the
responsibility of the international community to prevent future
genocides, he said.

Haq said "the U.N. hasn’t expressed any position on incidents that
took place long before the United Nations was established" after
World War II.

"In any case, the focus during the anniversary of the Rwanda
genocide should remain on Rwanda itself," he said.

Rwanda’s genocide began hours after a plane carrying President
Juvenal Habyarimana was mysteriously shot down as it approached the
capital, Kigali, on April 6, 1994. The 100-day slaughter, in which
more than 500,000 minority Tutsis were killed by Hutu extremists,
ended after rebels ousted the extremist Hutu government that
orchestrated the killings.

Smith said the panel on the origin of genocide could have been done
without referring to the Armenians.

But once the Armenian reference "was there and approved, we felt as
a matter of principle you can’t just go around striking things out.
It is a form of denial, and as an organization that deals with
genocide issues, we couldn’t do that on any genocide, and we can’t
do this," he said.

"If we can’t get this right, it undermines all the values of the
U.N. It undermines everything the U.N. is meant to stand for in
terms of preventing (genocide)," Smith said. "You can’t learn the
lessons from history if you’re going to sweep all of that history
under the carpet. And what about accountability? What about ending
impunity if you’re going to hide part of the truth? It makes a
mockery of all of this."

Haq said Ban planned to meet with Rwanda’s U.N. ambassador late
Monday, and he read a message from the secretary-general who
recalled the "personal impact" of his visit to Rwanda last year to
pay his respects to victims and survivors of the genocide.

"On this 13th anniversary of the genocide in Rwanda, two messages
should be paramount," Ban said. "First, never forget. Second never
stop working to prevent another genocide."

Associated Press Writer Lily Hindy contributed to this report

Kurdish leader warns Turkey not to intervene in Kirkuk

The Associated Press
Published: April 7, 2007

BAGHDAD: Turkey must not interfere in the Kurds’ bid to attach Iraq’s
oil-rich city of Kirkuk to the Kurdish semiautonomous zone, the top
official in Iraqi Kurdistan said in remarks broadcast Saturday.

Otherwise, Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani said, Iraq’s Kurds will
retaliate by intervening in Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish southeast,
where insurgents have battled for decades to establish their own
autonomy.

Barzani, president of the 15-year-old Kurdish autonomous region in
northern Iraq, issued the warning after last week’s endorsement by the
Iraqi government of a decision to relocate and compensate thousands of
Arabs who moved to the city as part of Saddam Hussein’s campaign to
push out the Kurds.

The government’s decision was a major step toward implementing a
constitutional requirement to determine the status of the disputed
city by the end of the year. The plan will likely turn Kirkuk and its
vast oil reserves over to Kurdish control, a step rejected by many of
Iraq’s Arabs and Turkmen ‘ ethnic Turk who are strongly backed by
Turkey.

"We will not let the Turks intervene in Kirkuk," Barzani said in an
interview with Al-Arabiyah television. "Kirkuk is an Iraqi city with a
Kurdish identity, historically and geographically. All the facts prove
that Kirkuk is part of Kurdistan."

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Some in Turkey have hinted at military action to prevent the Kurds
from gaining control of Kirkuk.

Turkish leaders are concerned that Iraq’s Kurds want Kirkuk’s oil
revenues to fund a bid for outright independence, not just
autonomy. The Turks fear that would encourage separatist Kurdish
guerrillas in Turkey, who have been fighting for autonomy since
1984. The conflict has claimed the lives of 37,000 people.

"Turkey is not allowed to intervene in the Kirkuk issue and if it
does, we will interfere in Diyarbakir’s issues and other cities in
Turkey," Barzani said. Diyarbakir is the largest city in Turkey’s
Kurdish-dominated southeast.

Asked if he meant to threaten Turkey, Barzani responded that he was
telling Ankara what would happen "if Turkey interferes." He said
Turkey had military and diplomatic clout, but that the Kurds had
survived through the Saddam Hussein regime and that what happened in
Kirkuk was "none of their (Ankara’s) business."

When asked about the Turkmen minority in Kirkuk and Turkey’s concern
for its ethnic brethren, Barzani shot back:

"There are 30 million Kurds in Turkey and we don’t interfere there. If
they (the Turks) interfere in Kirkuk over just thousands of Turkmen
then we will take action for the 30 million Kurds in Turkey."

"I hope we don’t reach this point, but if the Turks insist on
intervening in Kirkuk matter I am ready to take responsible for our
response," Barzani said.

The ancient city of Kirkuk has a large minority of Turkmen as well as
Christians, Shiite and Sunni Arabs, Armenians and Assyrians. Turkmen
were a majority in the city during the Ottoman Empire.

Barzani said the independence and statehood for Kurds, who live in
Turkey, Iran, Syria and Iraq was a "legitimate and legal right."

"But I am against the use of violence to reach this goal," he
continued.

GREECE HOPEFUL FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF CO-OPERATION WITH AZERBAIJAN

Today, Azerbaijan
April 5 2007

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece Ms Dora Bakoyannis has been
interviewed by the APA.

How do you appreciate the current relations between Azerbaijan
and Greece?

Our two countries enjoy good political and cultural relations. The
last two years have seen a dynamic exchange of high-level meetings
which help towards fostering closer ties. Greece is hopeful that we
will further develop and deepen our political, economic and cultural
co-operation. In this spirit, we eagerly await to welcome the Azeri
delegation at the 2nd Session of the Joint Ministerial Committee
for Economic and Technological Co-operation, which will be hosted
in Athens.

What is the official position of Greece in the solution of Kosovo
problem?

The main aim of Greece’s policy is to have a Southeastern European
neighbourhood characterised by flourishing economies, opportunity
for its citizens, peace, security and stability.

We believe in the need to devise a viable and sustainable solution
to the Kosovo issue. To this end, we stood behind and supported the
international community’s efforts to bridge differences and to bring
about a compromise which will ensure the functionality and viability
of any solution. We have repeatedly called upon both sides to show
the necessary constructive spirit and realism during the negotiation
process.

In short, the Greek government’s position on the issue of Kosovo’s
future status is threefold. First, we have insisted, and continue to
insist, that any solution should be consistent with the principles
and values of the European Union, and should be devised within the
framework of the region’s European perspective. Second, we believe
that if a democratic Kosovo is to emerge, it will have to become
a multiethnic and multicultural society, which will tolerate and
protect the rights of all its citizens, regardless of their religion
and ethnic origin. Third, the international community has to ensure
that any solution reached will bear no negative impact on the region’s
stability.

Do you think that the possibly Kosovo’s independence precedent might
be applied in the case of the ‘frozen conflicts’ from postsoviet
republics? Is it dangerous this precedent for international stability?

I don’t believe that Kosovo may constitute a precedent. The situation
in Kosovo is in no way comparable to those in other regions. The
case of Kosovo is unique; it has its own historic trajectory, its own
internal particularities, its own present realities. It is an error
to generalise; to take a very specific situation out of context and
try to apply it elsewhere.

What is the position of Greece on the "frozen conflict" and specially
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict?

Greece supports the territorial integrity and inviolability of all
borders. This, naturally, refers to the borders of all post-soviet
republics including, of course, Azerbaijan.

With regard to the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, we support the
efforts made on behalf of both the Azeri and Armenian presidents to
find a mutually acceptable solution to the Nagorno Karabach conflict.

The efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group and its co-chairmen towards the
settlement of the conflict are also extremely important. We sincerely
hope that a peaceful solution will soon be reached, and that the
refugees will be able to safely return to their homes.

What is importance of Nabucco project for Greece and what kind of
place Athens wants to take in this project?

The Nabucco project is included in the EU’s Trans-European Energy
Network and constitutes a priority for the EU and its neighbouring
countries. Hence, while Greece is not directly involved in the project,
we support its construction. We do so for two main reasons which we
believe to be of crucial importance. First, it is a project which
will diversify energy supply routings. Second, coupled with the TGI
Interconnector Project which could be operational by the year 2011,
both pipelines will greatly contribute to Europe’s energy security.

How is the activity of Muslim community in political and social life
of Greece?

We Greeks have a deep respect for all religions. We have been living
alongside Muslims for centuries and have a profound understanding
of Islam.

We are supporters and promoters of the dialogue of religions and
believe in the need for all spiritual leaders of all faiths to extend
the hand of friendship and of peace. This is essential for our peaceful
cohabitation. It provides the space within which to build bridges,
foster trust, address common challenges and resolve divisive issues. In
this spirit, we do not distinguish between peoples of different faiths,
and Muslims living in Greece enjoy the same rights and obligations
as all other inhabitants. Equality before the law and the state is
a value which is firmly entrenched in Greece, irrespective of religion.

Besides energy, in what spheres is Azerbaijan attractive for Greece?

Azerbaijan is a wonderful country with a plethora of resources. It
offers a great deal of opportunities for investment in the agriculture
sector, construction, communication, banking, telecoms, transport and,
of course, tourism.

Furthermore, our two countries can further deepen their bonds via
the cultural sector. For instance, I know that the Azeri people
have shown a great interest in Greek culture and civilization. The
Hellenic Cultural Centre at the Slavic University of Baku are doing
noteworthy work in terms of promoting and teaching the Greek language
and civilisation to Azeri students. Equally, Azerbaijan is a country
with many cultural and tourist attractions to offer. The old city of
Baku, for instance, with its fine arts and history museums housed in
pre-revolutionary mansions is magnificent. Moreover, Baku’s Palace
of the Shirvanshahs and Maiden Tower, which are classified by UNESCO
as World Heritage Sites, are a splendour for the eyes. In short,
cultural co-operation, coupled by tourism, are domains which offer
both countries a great many opportunities.

Greece is the member of EU. How do you value Azerbaijan’s perspectives
for accession to this organization? How can you help Azerbaijan in
this way?

For Greece, Azerbaijan is an important and valuable partner and ally.

During the Greek EU Presidency in 2003, our country supported
Azerbaijan’s rapprochement with the EU. Indeed, we promoted the idea
of appointing an EU Special Representative for Southern Caucasus.

EU-Azerbaijani relations are developing on several levels. Your country
has been a member of the Council of Europe since 2001 and has been the
EU’s European Neighbourhood Policy partner since 2006. The signing of
the EU-Azerbaijani Action Plan will, I believe, contribute further
to bringing the two sides even closer. It will also help Azerbaijan
in its reforms. In short, it provides Azerbaijan with the unique
opportunity to make full use of an enhanced co-operation with the EU.

Moreover, the EU and Azerbaijan have entered a new era of
co-operation in the energy sector with the signing of the Memorandum
of Understanding. Both sides share mutual interests and challenges in
the energy sector. The signing of this memorandum not only provides
the legal framework for co-operation but is also a tangible expression
of the political will from both sides to work alongside each other –
to be partners.

Does Greece, as a NATO state, intend to enlarge military cooperation
with Azerbaijan?

There have been instances of co-operation. For example, we trained
Azeri officers at the Multinational Peace Support Operation Training
Centre in Kilkis, Northern Greece. This Centre is one of the 11 NATO
PfP Training Centres. We would be willing and happy to repeat this
training programme.

Greece welcomes Azerbaijan’s commitment to Partnership for Peace,
as well as its desire to sign an agreement on bilateral military
co-operation. The Greek government has always supported and promoted
the idea of co-operation and partnership. We believe that partnerships
and alliances breed peace and security. To this end, we welcome any
proposals for a closer co-operation that the Azeri side may have
to offer.

Greece signed an agreement in the sphere of energy with Bulgaria
and Russia which envisages transferring the Russian oil through
Burgas-Alexandroupolis pipeline. Is this project a rival of
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline?

The month of March marked the three-way signing of the
Burgas-Alexandroupoli pipeline. Greece, Russia and Bulgaria signed
for the construction of an oil pipeline which will transport Russian
crude oil to Mediterranean shores. This will be economically more
efficient and will reduce the environmental risk in the Straits.

Moreover, it will serve to decongest the already ‘overworked’
Bosphorus Straits.

It is an error to view this important project as antagonistic to either
the Straits or the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline. Large-scale energy
projects such as the Burgas-Alexandroupoli and the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan
pipelines are welcome by the international community. They should be
seen as complementary rather than in competition with one another. Such
projects are important for the environmental future of our planet. They
are also crucial in diversifying energy source routings, thereby
enhancing energy security.

Finally, we must not forget that they also contribute to the
wider economic development our continent. The construction of such
energy projects should be supported and promoted by everyone in the
international community as they are to the benefit of the whole of
the international community.

URL:

OSCE OBSERVERS NOTE SHORTCOMINGS AHEAD OF ARMENIAN POLLS

Aravot, Yerevan
6 Apr 07

Text of report by Anna Israyelyan in Armenian newspaper Aravot on 6
April headlined "First report of OSCE observers"

[OSCE] observers have been working in Armenia for about a week
as ambassador Boris Frlec’s mission began to work officially on
21 March. On 25 March, 29 long-term observers were sent to 11
locations. Another 13 members of the team are located in Yerevan.

One of the general conclusions the observation mission has drawn
in its first interim report is that some instability is seen on the
horizon. This is partly due to the emergence of new political forces.

"In this term, a rapid rise of the Prosperous Armenia Party, which
has been functioning since March 2006, is noticeable."

The observers have noted a restriction on gatherings in the run-up to
the [12 May] election, citing as an example the Yerevan musicality’s
moves to prevent rallies in Freedom Square. The mission is studying
the materials of this case, which has been taken to court. Perhaps
our authorities are aware of this, which is why they do not prevent
the upcoming rallies planned to be held in Freedom Square.

Observers from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human
Rights [ODIHR] have dedicated a separate subsection to the voting of
[Armenian] citizens residing abroad. Almost all provisions that allowed
voting in Armenian embassies and consulates have been removed from
the Electoral Code. According to the mission, "relatively belated
implementation of those changes make it difficult to keep voters
informed".

The observers are planning to discuss the issue of voting by diplomatic
workers and Armenian citizens abroad.

The interim report also mentions recent amendments to the Electoral
Code. In particular, the report expresses concern that the requirement
of a quorum for [electoral] commissions’ work has been removed during
the electoral campaign. "While it can be a necessary anti-boycott
measure, the lack of the requirement on a quorum creates conditions
for passing decisions by commission chairpersons or a small number
of commission members."

The mission has underscored that it is crucial that electoral
commissions act based on the principles of "lawfulness, collegiality
and publicity."

FRANCE HAS ‘NO CONFIRMATION’ FROM TURKEY OF SUSPENSION OF TALKS WITH GDF

AFX International Focus
April 5, 2007 Thursday 1:22 PM GMT

PARIS (AFX) – The French foreign ministry said it has received ‘no
confirmation’ from Turkey of the suspension of talks with Gaz de
France over the Nabucco pipeline project.

A spokesman for the ministry said ‘We have received no confirmation
to this effect from the Turkish authorities,’ adding that the French
government had only learnt of the matter from press reports this
morning.

Earlier today, the Anatolie press agency reported that Turkey had
halted talks with Gaz de France in reaction to a French bill on the
mass killings of Armenians during Ottoman rule.

Contacted by the French press agency, Agence France-Presse (AFP),
a spokesman for GDF refused to comment on the claims.

AFP also contacted Botas, the Turkish state-owned oil and gas group
which is one of partners in the Nabucco consortium, but the company
declined to comment.

Armenians claim up to 1.5 mln people perished in systematic
deportations and killings between 1915 and 1917 under the Ottoman
Empire, modern Turkey’s predecessor.

Turkey categorically denies claims of genocide and says thousands of
Turks and Armenians were killed in civil strife when Armenians took
up arms for independence in eastern Anatolia and sided with Russian
troops invading the crumbling empire.

V. RUSHAYLO: GREAT EXPECTATIONS FROM APPOINTMENT OF RA NEW PRIME MINISTER

PanARMENIAN.Net
05.04.2007 13:47 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ "I positively appreciate Serzh Sargsyan’s appointment
as Prime Minister of Armenia.

We know him by his previous work and have personal contacts with
him," Sec. Gen. of CIS Executive Committee Vladimir Rushaylo stated
in Yerevan April 5.

He expressed hope the new Prime Minister will work effectively
in future.

"We accepted the news about late Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan’s
death with sorrow, we worked with him a rather long time and considered
his work effective," Rushaylo noted. He said, appointment of the new
Prime Minister is reality and great expectation are connected with it,
IA Regnum reports.

NAGORNY KARABAKH TO ELECT NEXT PRESIDENT JULY 19

Agence France Presse — English
April 4, 2007 Wednesday

The disputed Caucasus region of Nagorny Karabakh will hold presidential
elections on July 19, a spokesman for the regional parliament said
Wednesday.

"Presidential elections are required 50 days before the end of the
current head of state’s term," parliamentary spokesman Mikael Hajian
told AFP.

President Arkady Gukasian, elected in 1997 and 2002, is
constitutionally barred from running for a third term.

Armenian forces seized Nagorny Karabakh from Azerbaijan during a war
in the early 1990s that claimed an estimated 35,000 lives and forced
about a million people on both sides to flee their homes.

A ceasefire was signed in 1994, but the two countries have cut direct
economic and transport links and failed to negotiate a settlement on
the status of the enclave.

PRESIDNET KOCHARYAN MET WITH HEAD OF THE OSCE OBSERVATION MISSION BORIS FRLEC

ArmRadio.am
04.04.2007 17:53

President Robert Kocharyan received today the Head of the OSCE
Observation Mission Boris Frlec, President’s Press Office informs.

Issues related to the process of preparation of the parliamentary
elections and main principles of observation were discussed.

BOARD OF THE ARMENIAN CENTRAL BANK LOWERED THE REFINANCING RATE, ESTABLISHING IT AT THE LEVEL OF 4.5%

Mediamax, Armenia
April 3 2007

Yerevan, April 3 /Mediamax/. The Board of the Central Bank (CB) of
Armenia lowered today the refinancing rate for 0.25 percent points,
establishing it at the level of 4.5%.

As Mediamax was told in the press service of the Armenian CB, in March
2007, as compared to February, 0.6% price-cutting is registered. In
these conditions the inflation made 4.4% in the 12-month period –
0.7 percent points lower that the planned level of inflation for the
first quarter of 2007.

The Board of the Armenian Central Bank believes that the inflationary
pressure from outside has considerably smoothened, and the existing
tendencies in economy do not create conditions for the increase
of the inflationary pressure, reasoned by the development of the
aggregate demand.

In this situation, the Board of the Armenian CB considers it realistic
that the real inflation will be lower than the level, targeted at
the level of 4%.

In the conditions of preservation of the present prospects of economy
development, the CB Board does not rule out the probability of a
further clarification of the interest rates.

Armenian Assembly of America
1140 19th Street, NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20036
Phone: 202-393-3434
Fax: 202-638-4904
Email: [email protected]
Web:

Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 3, 2007
CONTACT: Karoon Panosyan
E-mail: [email protected]

U.S. SENATE PASSES GENOCIDE ACCOUNTABILITY ACT

Washington DC – The Armenian Assembly commended Senator Richard Durbin
(D-IL), along with Senators Tom Coburn (R-OK), Patrick J. Leahy (D-VT)
and John Cornyn (R-TX) as legislation which they introduced, passed the
U.S. Senate last week. The Genocide Accountability Act, S. 888, closes a
legal loophole that prevented the U.S. Justice Department from punishing
perpetrators of genocide who find safe haven in the United States.

"There is no safe haven for the hundreds of thousands of Sudanese facing
genocide in Darfur and yet our country is providing a safe haven for
their killers," said Senator Durbin who chairs the Senate Judiciary
Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law. "The current loophole in our
genocide laws has real-life consequences. While genocide rages in
Darfur, the United States must commit to holding those guilty of
genocide accountable."

"The extraterritorial jurisdiction contained within the Genocide
Accountability Act upholds the spirit of the United Nations Convention
on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide," said
Assembly Board of Trustees Chairman Hirair Hovnanian. "We commend
Senators Durbin, Coburn, Leahy and Cornyn for bringing much needed
attention to this important human rights issue," Hovnanian added.

The legislation allows foreign nationals who enter America to be
prosecuted for committing the crime of genocide outside of the United
States.

"In America we are blessed with the most effective and just legal system
in the world. It is contrary to our system of justice to allow
perpetrators of genocide to go free without fear of prosecution," said
Senator Coburn, the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Human Rights
and the Law. "Fundamentally, we must decide if genocide is a bad enough
crime, no matter where it happens, that it warrants the same treatment
as terrorism-related crimes."

This is the first piece of legislation to be produced by the
Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law, which has jurisdiction over
all human rights laws and policies and follows a hearing held in
February entitled "Genocide and the Rule of Law" where the Armenian
Assembly submitted testimony. The Genocide Accountability Act has been
endorsed by the Save Darfur Coalition, Genocide Intervention Network,
American Jewish World Service, Armenian Assembly of America, Armenian
National Committee of America, Human Rights First, Human Rights Watch,
Alliance for Justice, Refugees International, and ENOUGH.

The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based
nationwide organization promoting public understanding and awareness of
Armenian issues. It is a 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt membership
organization.

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NR#2007-044