Author: Kanayan Tamar

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
March 21 2015

Armenian opposition voices clutch prospect of being heard in Parliament

Preliminary Armenian candidates for the upcoming general election who
are supported by Nor Zartonk gathered for a press conference on
Wednesday in Ä°stanbul. (Photo: Sunday’s Zaman)

March 21, 2015, Saturday/ 17:00:00/ ZEYNEP KARATAÃ…? / ISTANBUL

The upcoming general election on June 7 will mark Turkey’s 24th
election for members of Parliament, and this year brings exciting
milestones for minority representation in Turkey. On Wednesday, three
more candidates presented their bid for nomination for the upcoming
general election on the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP)
ticket.

Filor Uluk, Murad Mıhçı and Diren Cevahir Å?en, representatives for the
Nor Zartonk Initiative — a civil society group representing Turkey’s
Armenian community, have now joined Garo Paylan and Nıvart BakırcıoÄ?lu
in the running for positions in Parliament as members of the HDP. In
addition to the HDP candidates, Talin ErgüneÅ? has also announced her
candidacy for nomination on the Republican People’s Party (CHP)
ticket.

In a press conference held in Ä°stanbul, it became clear that the three
most recent candidates are capable of presenting issues that matter to
all peoples living in the Turkish Republic, not only the
Turkish-Armenian community. Ã…?en, for example, began her career as a
lawyer in 2009 and has represented issues of women’s rights and
ecological rights. She also provided pro bono support for doctors who
were tried for providing medical care to protesters during the Gezi
Park protests in 2013. In addition to being an active member of the
HDP and Nor Zartonk since both were founded, she also takes part in
the Socialist Feminist Collective.

`Right now there is a party in power that is oppressing people who
have already been oppressed. First of all, the ruling party is not
counting women. That’s why in the upcoming elections we find it
important to represent all peoples,’ she stated during a press
conference held at the Armenian Culture and Solidarity Association
Center in Ä°stanbul on Wednesday.

Uluk also stressed the importance of representing minority rights in
Turkey with her HDP candidacy, not only to support Kurds and Armenians
but to speak on behalf of all oppressed parties. Uluk was born in 1960
in Samatya, a predominantly Armenian neighborhood of Ä°stanbul.
Throughout the 1990s, she was an active member of organizations
including the People’s Labor Party (HEP), the Social Democratic
People’s Party (SHP) and the Freedom and Solidarity Party (Ã-DP).

`We are a group living in a society where patriarchy is the model
presented to us. As Armenians, beyond being oppressed, we are the
women whose voices go unheard — voices of a people that have closed
ourselves off under suppression. We are first represented by our
fathers, then by our husbands after we are married, for the most
part,’ stated Uluk at the same conference.

`Granting women [rights] is the first step for a people to be freed,
and a guarantee that cannot be missed. Therefore, it is important that
I take advantage of this historic political moment by representing my
community,’ she added.

Armenian representation in Turkey

`Armenians now have a growing voice, and we hope this voice continues
to grow. Parliament is an important place for this voice to
reverberate, these elections will be an important opportunity to be
heard. But this alone is not enough, because [we the] opposition are
also on the streets,’ Ã…?en further commented on Wednesday.

Controversy and pressure continue to build with the approach of the
hotly contested centennial celebrations of the Ottoman Empire’s
systematic extermination of 1.5 million Armenians that began on April
24, 1915. `In short, we believe that this is beyond just the symbolism
of entering Parliament 100 years after the Armenian genocide. We
believe we will be able to share our voices and concerns there,’ Ã…?en
concluded.

Activist and spokesperson for Nor Zartonk, Sayat Tekir also commented
on Wednesday about the historic progress made by members of the
Turkish-Armenian community and how, despite the bitter past,
Armenians’ voices are gaining volume, though leaders in power, such as
President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an, still use the term `Armenian’ as an
insult.

`We [the Armenian community] have lived through times when we were
referred to as `evil Armenians’ and `Armenian dogs’ in headlines, as
we were at the end of the 1970s and during the 1980s. Of course we
have been a community that has closed itself off after having lived
through events such as the Sept. 6-7 [pogroms of 1955]. Perhaps the
person who first broke down that door was Hrant Dink with the
publication of Agos.’

Tekir’s allusion to the events of Sept. 6-7 is a reference to when
homes and stores belonging to Greeks, Jews and Armenians in the city
were targeted in a pogrom triggered by news, which was later proved to
be false, that the house in Thessaloniki, Greece, where Mustafa Kemal
Atatürk was born in 1881 had been bombed. It was through
Turkish-Armenian journalist Dink that the Armenian community gained a
voice as he published the Agos weekly newspaper in both Turkish and
Armenian.

`While we are able to express ourselves more freely, there are still
people who use the word `Armenian’ as an insult. There are still those
who say, `Excuse me, but they called me Armenian.’ ‘

In this comment, Tekir refers to controversial remarks made in August
by President ErdoÄ?an, who was prime minister at the time, when he
said: `You wouldn’t believe the things they have said about me. They
have said I am Georgian. ¦they have said even uglier things — they
have called me Armenian, but I am Turkish.’

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE REMEMBERED AT FRESNO ART SPACE GALLERY

11:29, 20 Mar 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan

April 24 is marked as Remembrance Day of the Armenian Genocide. 2015
particularly stands out because it’s been 100 years since the genocide.

The art space gallery at Fresno City College is one of the many venues
in Fresno that will have events to remember those lost to the genocide,
The Rampage Online reports.

Artist Joyce Gostanian Kierejczyk hosted an Art Hop event on March 5.

Guests were greeted at the entrance with a mound of forget-me-nots.

Guests then could write the name of a loved one who died in the
Armenian genocide on a piece of paper, slip it on the flower and
place it in the exhibit itself.

The actual exhibit consisted of paper sculptures that represented
those lost in the Armenian Genocide as well as photography pieces of
Armenia by Peter Carapetian.

Under the hanging sculptures were piles of raisins made to look like
graves, where guests then placed their flowers.

The exhibit contained 937.5 pounds of raisins that was donated by
the Caruthers Raisin Packing Company and Dennis Housepan.

“This half ton of raisins signifies the 1.5 million people that died
during the Armenian Genocide,” said by Joyce Gostanian Kierejczyk.

Everything in this exhibit is completely symbolic by nature, but the
artist goes the extra mile. During Art Hop, Joyce Gostanian was there
with her art, mingling with guests and telling her stories.

Not only is she undeniably talented, but she so flawlessly preserves
history so those of the present and future can remember what happened
to their ancestors.

Also posted on the wall were quotes by Joyce Gostanian.

“The stories that I heard many times were of the Armenian families
that were tortured and killed and sent off to march into the desert.

Although this story seemed untrue to my viewpoint, my mother would
repeat it throughout her life as the story she heard as a child. The
same story is repeated by many generations of Armenians of the
Armenian Genocide.”

These stories, although so shocking they may have sounded unreal,
were very real and stressed the importance of remembering the past
and those who were lost, no matter how dark and tragic.

This exhibit will be running until April 9 in Fresno City College’s
Art Space Gallery.

ONU : L’EI POURRAIT AVOIR PERPETRE UN GENOCIDE CONTRE LES YEZIDIS

Publie le : 20-03-2015

Info Collectif VAN – – “Le groupe dit de > (EIIL) pourrait avoir commis
les trois crimes internationaux les plus graves, c’est-a-dire des
crimes de guerre, des crimes contre l’humanite et un genocide, selon
un rapport publie jeudi par le Haut-Commissariat des Nations Unies
aux droits de l’homme. Le rapport, qui a ete compile par une equipe
d’enquete envoyee dans la region par le Haut-Commissariat des Nations
Unies aux droits de l’homme a la fin de l’annee dernière, s’appuie
sur des interviews approfondies auprès de plus de 100 personnes
qui ont ete les temoins d’attaques en Irak ou qui ont survecu a ces
attaques entre juin 2014 et fevrier 2015. Il documente un eventail de
violations commises par l’EIIL contre de nombreux groupes ethniques
et religieux en Irak, dont certaines pourraient, selon le rapport,
constituer un genocide. Le schema manifeste des attaques contre les
Yezidis >, a declare le rapport. Ceci > que l’EIIL pourrait avoir perpetre un genocide.” Le Collectif VAN
vous invite a lire ce rapport publie par le Haut-Commissariat des
Nations Unies aux droits de l’homme le 19 mars 2015.

Haut-Commissariat des Nations Unies aux droits de l’homme

19 mars 2015

GENEVE

L’EIIL pourrait avoir commis des crimes de guerre, des crimes contre
l’humanite et un genocide, indique un rapport de l’ONU

Le groupe dit de > (EIIL)
pourrait avoir commis les trois crimes internationaux les plus graves,
c’est-a-dire des crimes de guerre, des crimes contre l’humanite et
un genocide, selon un rapport publie jeudi par le Haut-Commissariat
des Nations Unies aux droits de l’homme.

Le rapport, qui a ete compile par une equipe d’enquete envoyee dans
la region par le Haut-Commissariat des Nations Unies aux droits de
l’homme a la fin de l’annee dernière, s’appuie sur des interviews
approfondies auprès de plus de 100 personnes qui ont ete les temoins
d’attaques en Iraq ou qui ont survecu a ces attaques entre juin 2014
et fevrier 2015. Il documente un eventail de violations commises par
l’EIIL contre de nombreux groupes ethniques et religieux en Iraq,
dont certaines pourraient, selon le rapport, constituer un genocide.

Le rapport met aussi en exergue des violations, y compris des meurtres,
tortures et enlèvements, qui auraient ete commises par les forces de
securite iraquiennes et des milices qui leur sont associees.

Le rapport documente des abus generalises commis par l’EIIL, dont
des meurtres, tortures, viols, esclavage sexuel, conversions forcees
et enrôlement des enfants. Tous ces abus, indique-t-il, pourraient
constituer des violations du droit international des droits de l’homme
et du droit humanitaire. Certains pourraient constituer des crimes
contre l’humanite et/ou des crimes de guerre.

Toutefois, le schema manifeste des attaques contre les Yezidis >, a declare le rapport. Ceci >
que l’EIIL pourrait avoir perpetre un genocide.

Le rapport, demande par le Conseil des droits de l’homme des Nations
Unies a l’initiative du Gouvernement iraquien*, mentionne le meurtre
brutal et cible de centaines d’hommes et garcons yezidis dans les
plaines de Ninive en août dernier. Dans de nombreux villages yezidis,
la population a ete regroupee. Les hommes et garcons de plus de 14 ans
ont ete separes des femmes et des filles. Les hommes ont ete emmenes
plus loin et abattus par l’EIIL, tandis que les femmes etaient enlevees
comme >.

>, a etabli le rapport, >

Certaines des femmes et des filles yezidies qui se sont ensuite
echappees ont decrit avoir ete ouvertement vendues ou remises en > a des membres de l’EIIL. Des temoins ont entendu des filles,
d’a peine six et neuf ans, appeler a l’aide alors qu’elles se faisaient
violer dans une maison utilisee par des combattants de l’EIIL. Un
temoin a decrit deux membres de l’EIIL assis en train de rire, alors
que deux jeunes filles etaient violees dans la pièce voisine. Une femme
enceinte, violee a plusieurs reprises par un > de l’EIIL
pendant deux mois et demi, a declare qu’il s’asseyait de manière
intentionnelle sur son ventre. Il lui a dit que

ANI, BABYLON, POMPEII: THE MUST-VISIT ‘LOST CITIES’

16:16, 20 Mar 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan

The ‘lost cities’ that you can still visit: MailOnline Travel has
compiled a list of 10 must-visit ‘lost cities,’ guaranteed to satisfy
everyone from history buffs to backpackers.

>From the ancient city of Babylon in Iraq, also home to the mythical
hanging gardens that have been named one of the Seven Ancient Wonders
of the World, to the medieval Armenian ruins of Ani, Turkey, these
civilizations of yesteryear are nothing short of awe-inspiring.

Ani, Turkey

The medieval Armenian ruins are situated in Kars, near the Akhurian
River on the border of Armenia, and was once the capital of the
Bagratid Armenian Kingdom.

Once a walled city with more than 100,000 residents, in the centuries
that followed, the region was conquered many times – by everyone from
Ottoman Turks to Russians – and was completely abandoned by the 1700s.

One of its most famous monuments is the Monastery of the Hripsimian
Virgins, which was thought to be built between 1000 and 1200 AD.

Persepolis, Iran

Persepolis, or ‘the city of Persians,’ dates back to 515 BC when it
was once the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire.

Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979, the ruins lie at the
foot of Kuh-i-Rahmat, or Mercy Mountains, near the city of Shiraz.

It was built on a half-artificial, half-natural terrace where a palace
complex inspired by Mesopotamian models was developed by cutting into
the rocky mountainside.

All that remains today is that which was not burned by the Greeks in
330 under the leadership of Alexander the Great.

Epecuen, Argentina

This ghost town may not be ancient, but there was a time when many
former residents were sure that it was lost forever.

Once a busting lakeside resort, the Argentinean town was flooded
without warning in November 1985 when heavy rains caused the lagoon
to burst its banks and submerged the small community in corrosive
salt water.

Although the town was never rebuilt – most cafe owners and hoteliers
simply moved to a nearby seaside town to set up shop – it’s now become
a popular tourist destination once again, in particular for the Jewish
community of Buenos Aires.

Ciudad Perdida, Colombia

High in the Sierra Nevada mountains, the country’s Lost City has
recently been dubbed ‘the new Machu Picchu,’ after being first
discovered in the 1970s.

The site is believed to date back to about 800 AD, which is over 600
years earlier than the world’s most famous lost city to which many
comparisons have been drawn.

Made up of 169 terraces, which are carved into the mountains, Ciudad
Perdida, or Teyuna as its known by the local tribes, also boasts
early tiled roads and several small plazas.

However, to access the ruins, guests must be in good shape as they
will be required to climb up 1,200 stone steps through dense jungle.

Machu Picchu, Peru

This 15th century Inca site is a tourist favourite among those
interested in exploring ancient cities, attracting over one million
visitors last year alone.

Adventurers can choose from one of several multi-day treks that lead
hikers deep into the Sacred Valley, though the Inca Trail is far and
away the most popular.

Coaches are also available for those who are unable to climb the
500-year-old citadel and still wish to take in the impressive views.

Tour operators recommend arriving at dawn or dusk for the most
breathtaking views and warn that between 11am and 3pm is busiest.

Babylon, Iraq

Founded 4,000 years ago, the ancient city was the capital of 10
dynasties in Mesopotamia, and its walls and mythic hanging gardens
are considered to be one of the world’s original Seven Wonders.

Also believed to be the birthplace of writing and literature, due to
unrest in the region in recent years, Babylon has not drawn as many
visitors as expected from the far reaches of the globe.

The city is located 85km south of Baghdad and is accessible only
after going through several security checkpoints.

Where once stood towering gates and a bustling market city packed
with traders, now only remains remnants of the city’s walls and a
2,500-year-old statue of a lion.

The in-tact buildings at the ancient city are mainly ill-advised
attempts by former dictator Saddam Hussein who tried to reconstruct
monuments ‘to glorify Iraq’ and rebuilt the Nebuchadnezzar II palace
on top of the original’s ruins.

Angkor Wat, Cambodia

One of the most important archeological sites in Southeast Asia,
Angkor stretches over 400 square kms and features the remains of
several different capitals of the Khmer Empire.

All were constructed from between the 9th and 15th century, but the
most famous are the Temple of Angkor Wat and the Bayon Temple.

The impressive monuments, ancient urban plans and large water
reservoirs, as well as evidence of centuries-old communication routes,
are all located in the Siem Reap Province and are indicative of an
exceptional civilization.

Petra, Jordan

The historical city, located in the Ma’an governorate, is famous for
its architecture, carved into the red sandstone rock, as well as for
its ancient water conduit system.

Ideally situated between the Red Sea and the Dead Sea, Petra was once
an important crossroads between Arabia, Egypt and Syria-Phoenicia.

The surrounding mountains are riddled with passages and gorges, though
the UNESCO World Heritage Centre is subject to erosion due to wind,
including windblown sand, and rain.

Pompeii, Italy

The ancient Roman town is situated near the current city of Naples,
and researchers believe that it was founded as early as six century BC.

However, the impressive architecture was mostly buried and destroyed
after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD blanketed the region
in burning pumice stone and ash.

Today, the ghostly ruins, which include an amphitheatre and a port,
are one of the most popular tourist destinations in the country,
drawing 2.5 million guests each year.

LITURGY IN THE MEMORY OF VICTIMS OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE IN BUENOS AIRES

17:50, 20 Mar 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan

On March 19, Archbishop, Clergy Leader of Argentina, Archbishop of
Buenos Aires Cardinal Mario Aurelio Poli performed holy liturgy in
the memory of 1.5 million victims of the Armenian Genocide.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship on religious issues
Juan Laureano Landaburu, undersecretary of Human Rights of the
Buenos Aires City Government Claudio Avruj, representatives of the
Armenian Apostolic and Catholic Churches of Argentina, leader of Greek
Orthodox Church, representatives of religious and national minorities,
Argentinian Armenian community structures, cultural institutions,
parliamentarians, politicians and public figures, diplomats and
journalists attended the event.

During the liturgy ecumenical prayer was performed by Primate of the
Diocese of the Armenian Catholic Church in Latin America, His Eminence
Archishop Vardan Poghosyan and Primate of Diocese of the Armenian
Apostolic Church in Argentina and Chile, Archbishop Gisak Muradyan.

In his remarks, at the end of the liturgy, Ambassador of Armenia to
Argentina Alexan Harutyunyan expressed gratitude to Archbishop Mario
Aurelio Polie for performed prayer for the repose of souls of the
victims of the Armenian Genocide, as well as unanimously shared great
sorrow, and the best example is the cross-stone, dedicated to the
90th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, installed in Catedral de
Buenos Aires by Pope Francis, then Archbishop of Buenos Aires Bergolio.

ZHOGHOVURD: ARMENIAN FM GOES ON TRAVELLING BUSINESS CLASS

09:31 * 20.03.15

Armenia’s FM Edward Nalbandian goes on traveling round the world only
business class.

Under a contract signed on March 10, the staff of Armenia’s Ministry of
Foreign Affairs paid a total of AMD 5,654,636 (US $11,793.76) to the
Imperia Travel Ltd for six air tickets, with a total of AMD 1,403,986
paid for the business class ticket Yerevan-Paris-Geneva-Paris-Yerevan.

An economy class ticket for the same flight is AMD 500,000 cheaper. Of
course, such a question would never have been raised if half of
Armenia’s population had not found themselves below the poverty line
due to activities of Mr Nalbandian and others of that ilk, writes
the newspaper.

WHAT SERZH SARGSYAN DIDN’T TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION

Igor Muradyan, Political Analyst
Politics – 20 March 2015, 11:22

Addressing the media forum At the Foot of Mount Ararat, Serzh Sargsyan
said, “For a long time, for 250 years, the Armenians and Russians
lived side by side, had common enemies, rivals, and did not shoot at
each other from weapons produced in their country.”

Is this true? Apparently, they have forgotten to remind the president
that in 1991 and 1992 Russia launched two punitive campaigns against
the Armenian armed units in Karabakh, which have not been evaluated
in political and legal terms and have not been condemned.

When one makes such a statement, one should remember what the Armenian
society has forgotten so fast and with such pleasure.

Intensive supply of weapons to Azerbaijan by Russia, which the
Armenians keep ignoring, will soon be felt. This is a continuation
of the policy which was conducted in the 1990s.

STORIES AND PHOTOS OF 45 ARMENIAN GENOCIDE SURVIVORS IN ONE BOOK

10:13, 20 March, 2015

YEREVAN, 20 MARCH, ARMENPRESS. Photographer Nazik Armenakyan will
present a book-album of photos of survivors of the Armenian Genocide.

It took years of hard work for the photographer to compile the personal
stories of 45 Armenian Genocide survivors living in different parts
of Armenia and record the horror in their eyes with her camera.

The 130-40 page book will be released in Armenian and English. It
will be illustrated and will include a photo of a survivor next to
each story. The preface of the book will be by Mark Nshanyan, and
the editor of the photos will be film critic Vigen Galstyan.

“I visited survivors living in different regions. I would go to
the villages, and it would happen that I would visit seven villages
and nobody would be there. I would cry on the way back. Words can’t
describe how much pain I felt whenever I lost track of a survivor. I
would get sad not because I was losing another person to take a photo
of, but because I was losing a person who was close to my heart,”
the photographer said in an interview with “Armenpress”.

TURKEY DISRESPECTED ITS SIGNATURE AND SET FORTH PRECONDITIONS FOR NORMALIZATION OF ARMENIAN- TURKISH RELATIONS: FARMANYAN

12:01, 20 March, 2015

YEREVAN, 20 MARCH, ARMENPRESS. Turkey is trying to manipulate the
international community with its policy.

This is what Deputy of the faction of the Republican Party of Armenia
(RPA) of the National Assembly, Co-Chairman of the EU-Armenia
Parliamentary Cooperation Committee Samvel Farmanyan said during
the 15th session of the EU-Armenia Parliamentary Cooperation
Committee.”To emphasize, I must recall that when the President of
Armenia initiated the normalization of relations with Turkey in 2008,
which foreign presses and political circles later referred to as
“football diplomacy”, at the time, the international community
was supporting that process. We all remember seeing high-ranking
representatives of the EU, the Russian Federation, the United States
and other countries present at the signing of the Armenia-Turkey
Protocols in Zurich on October 10, 2009. Unfortunately, those
Protocols weren’t ratified due to Turkey’s destructive policy,”
Farmanyan mentioned, as “Armenpress” reports.

Farmanyan said anyone who reads the texts of the Armenia-Turkey
Protocols will see that it is written that Armenia and Turkey, as
two subjects of international law, are committed by those Protocols
to establish diplomatic relations. Farmanyan recalled that then U.S.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and high-ranking EU officials had
stated that linking normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations to
the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict would mean disturbing
the sides, not helping each other. “However, Turkey disrespected its
signature and set forth preconditions, and the Protocols weren’t
ratified. The illegally closed border remains closed on one side,
and there are no perspectives of normalization of the Armenian-Turkish
relations,” Farmanyan concluded.

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION INTRODUCED TO US CONGRESS AMID TURKISH-AMERICAN CRITICISM

Daily Sabah, Turkey
March 19 2015

RAGIP SOYLU

A bipartisan group of Congressmen on Wednesday introduced the
Armenian-lobby-backed controversial Armenian Genocide Truth and
Justice Resolution and faced harsh criticism from leaders of the
Turkish-American community.

Reps. David G. Valadao (CA-21), Robert Dold (R-IL), Adam Schiff (D-CA)
and Frank Pallone (D-NJ), along with 39 other Members of the House of
Representatives publicized House Resolution 154 with a press conference
in front of Congress. Rep. Schiff said that the draft resolution,
if passed by Congress, would officially recognize the Armenian
genocide and call upon President Obama to work with the Turkish and
Armenian governments to bring about the reconciliation based upon
full acknowledgment of the historic fact of “Armenian genocide.”

Representatives declared last month that they would be introducing
the resolution on February 24, which accuses the Ottoman Empire of
committing genocide in 1915 by killing 1.5 million Armenians, but
they failed to find enough signatories.

The Turkish Institute for Progress (TIP), a New York-based increasingly
influential Turkish-American association, condemned such “divisive
tactics” implemented by the Armenian National Committee of America
(ANCA) and said that the resolution undermines U.S. interests and
jeopardizes the chance for peace and reconciliation between the
Turkish and Armenian communities. TIP adviser and former U.S.

Representative, Solomon P. Ortiz, said, “We ask the Armenian Diaspora
and the powerful lobbying groups behind them to cease the tactics
that create further conflict and join us in our mission to look toward
the next hundred years.”

The resolution, marking the 100th anniversary of the 1915 incidents,
recalls President Barack Obama’s early remarks on the issue before
entering the office, when he stated that he firmly held the conviction
that the Armenian Genocide is not an allegation or a personal opinion
but rather a widely documented fact. The resolution also blames the
Turkish government for the collapse of diplomatic reconciliation
between Turkey and Armenia by quoting then Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton’s statements, “the ball remains in Turkey’s court.”

Ä°brahim Uyar, co-chair of the Turkish American Steering Committee –
a joint endeavor of 145 Turkish American organizations – said that
the resolution might not succeed. “Armenians clearly see that the
Congress will not pass the resolution. They have a new date, which is
2023, the 100th anniversary of Turkish Republic, to complete their
task. This is why they focus more on state-level resolutions in New
Jersey and Massachusetts.”

The Armenian lobby recently increased its pressure on Turkish
communities abroad and has sometimes used somewhat bold tactics. The
Turkish Ambassador to France Hakkı Akil was attacked with a cup of
pomegranate juice by a French-Armenian protester on March 2 during
his talk on “Secularism in Turkey and France” at the faculty of law at
Paris Descartes University. An Armenian publication recently targeted
Congressman Bill Schuster because of his refusal to become one of
signatories of the Armenian resolution. Publisher of the Armenian
community daily, The California Courier, said that Armenians should
apply “such pressure” to Bill Schuster to create an example showing
other representatives that they too would be targeted for defeat. The
same newspaper called on Armenians to pressure American companies
to cancel their official contract with the Gephardt Group, one of
Turkey’s lobbying firms.