Armenian National Committee of America
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PRESS RELEASE
May 26, 2006
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
Tel: (202) 775-1918
REP. PALLONE CONDEMNS AMB. EVANS FIRING
— Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chairman
Presses for Answers from the State Department
— “Amb. Evans should be praised, not dismissed,
for rejecting a ‘gag-rule’ imposed by the Turkish
Government on the discussion of the Armenian
Genocide by America’s leaders at home and
diplomats abroad.” — ANCA WebFax to Congress
WASHINGTON, DC – The controversy surrounded the firing of U.S.
Ambassador to Armenia John Marshall Evans continued to grow this
week with a powerful statement by the Co-Chairman of the Armenian
Caucus, calls for Congressional hearings, and a series of as yet
unanswered inquiries from the national media during the State
Department’s daily press briefing, reported the Armenian National
Committee of America (ANCA).
In a May 25th statement on the House floor, Congressman Frank
Pallone (D-NJ) forcefully condemned the Administration for forcing
Amb. Evans to vacate his post for publicly affirming the Armenian
Genocide. He voiced his “fear that the Government of Turkey may
have played a role in this unfortunate event. I strongly believe
they have expressed concern to the White House over Evans’ remarks
last year. In fact, immediately following his remarks, Evan issued
a “correction,” all too seemingly at the behest of the
Administration. We must not allow a third party to interfere in
U.S. diplomacy and refrain from declaring the truth in order to
promote relations with Turkey.”
Congressman Pallone noted that he has yet to receive an explanation
from the State Department, despite having written a letter to the
Secretary more than two months ago requesting a thorough
description of the reasons behind the Ambassador’s recall.
Commenting on similar unanswered letters and questions posed during
Congressional hearings regarding this controversy, he noted that,
“now, the White House has made an ‘official’ announcement but still
has not given an explanation.” He closed by expressing his “hope
that the newly-appointed U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, Richard
Hoagland, will not play the word games of the White House, and
comply with Turkey’s campaign of genocidal denial.”
The White House made the recall of Amb. Evans official this week
with the public announcement of his replacement, Richard Hoagland.
As he has repeated over the past several months, the State
Department spokesperson, Sean McCormack, yesterday, again avoided
answering a direct question about the reasons for Amb. Evans’
recall. In response to persistent questioning, he limited his
remarks to generically praising Amb. Evans’ service, noting his
replacement, and repeating the stock-phrase that he and other
senior Administration officials “serve at the pleasure of the
President.”
The ANCA has called for Congressional hearings to investigate the
firing of Ambassador Evans. Using the ANCA website, activists can
send their legislators a free ANCA WebFax asking them to call for
hearings of both the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the
House International Relations Committee. These letters call for a
full hearing, featuring testimony from all the key figures involved
in this situation, as well as a thorough examination of the role of
the Turkish Government in exporting its suppression of speech to
the United States.
The ANCA WebFaxes state, in part, that, “Amb. Evans is, in effect,
being punished for honoring his President’s pledge to properly
recognize the Armenian Genocide – a promise that George W. Bush
made on the campaign trail in February of 2000 but abandoned once
in the White House. Amb. Evans should be praised, not dismissed,
for rejecting “gag-rules” imposed by the Turkish Government on the
discussion of the Armenian Genocide by America’s leaders at home
and diplomats abroad.” The letters close by expressing outrage
that the “Administration has lacked the courage to speak honestly –
either to Congress or the American people – about its reasons for
firing Ambassador Evans. Hopefully, these hearings will provide
the transparency that we, as citizens, have the right to expect of
our government.”
Earlier this week, sixty Members of Congress, led by Rep. Ed Markey
(D-MA), sent a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice asking
for clarification of the reasons behind Amb. Evans’ recall. Prior
to this letter, Rep. Pallone, Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Rep. Grace
Napolitano (D-CA) each independently called on the State Department
to explain reports that Amb. Evans was being recalled because of
his speech on the Armenian Genocide.They have yet to receive any
response to their inquiries.
The Los Angeles Times, in a strongly worded March 22nd editorial,
made direct reference to Amb. Evans’ impending dismissal, calling
on the Turkish Government and U.S. State Department to end their
policies of Armenian Genocide denial.
Following his statements last February, Amb. Evans was forced to
issue a clarification that his references to the Armenian Genocide
were his personal views and did not represent a change in US
policy. He subsequently issued a correction to this statement,
replacing a reference to the genocide with the word “tragedy.” The
American Foreign Service Association, which had planned to honor
Amb. Evans with the “Christian A. Herter Award,” recognizing
creative thinking and intellectual courage within the Foreign
Service, reportedly rescinded the award following pressure from the
State Department a few days before Turkish Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan traveled to Washington, DC to meet with President
Bush.
The full text of Congressman Pallone’s remarks are provided below.
#####
Text of Congressman Frank Pallone’s (D-NJ) remarks
U.S. House of Representatives
May 25, 2006
“Mr. Speaker, I rise today because the White House has finally made
an announcement of what many of us already knew: Ambassador John
Evans is officially being replaced as United States Ambassador to
Armenia.
“Ambassador Evans has given exemplary service to his country and
was a well-respected ambassador in a region of strategic importance
to the United States. However, as it turns out, Evans was forced
to vacate his post for publicly affirming the Armenian Genocide.
“Reports highly suggest that because Evans declared that “the
Armenian Genocide was the first genocide of the twentieth century”
he is being unjustly penalized for speaking the truth. However, by
employing the proper term last year, the Ambassador was only
building on previous statements by our leaders in government, as
well as the repeated declarations of numerous world-renowned
scholars. Ambassador Evans did nothing more than succinctly repeat
the conclusions enunciated by many before him.
“Mr. Speaker, it is my fear that the Government of Turkey may have
played a role in this unfortunate event. I strongly believe they
have expressed concern to the White House over Evans’ remarks last
year. In fact, immediately following his remarks, Evan issued a
“correction,” all too seemingly at the behest of the
Administration. We must not allow a third party to interfere in US
diplomacy and refrain from declaring the truth in order to promote
relations with Turkey.
“To this day, the Republic of Turkey refuses to acknowledge the
fact that this massive crime against humanity took place under its
control, in the name of Turkish nationalism. Unfortunately, some
90 years later, the US State Department continues to support
Turkey’s denials despite all evidence to the contrary.
“It is unacceptable for this Administration to penalize Evans for
his comments. What he did was courageous and should be viewed as
such, not punished. Ambassador Evans simply articulated the same
message as that of the Administration; however, the only difference
was his assigning a word to define the actions taken against
Armenians.
“Ambassador Evans is in fact an expert on the subject. He has
studied the history of Armenia, and based on his substantial
studies, he was willing to go on the record and define the
systematic extermination of 1.5 million Armenian men, women and
children as genocide.
“Mr. Speaker, in early March, I wrote a letter to the State
Department because I was outraged to see that Ambassador Evans was
withdrawn from Armenia. Based on news reports, the State
Department recalled the Ambassador as retaliation for his
statements.
“Over two months have passed since I expressed my disappointment
and I have yet to receive a response from the State Department. I
specifically asked Secretary Rice for an explanation as to why
Ambassador Evans was removed from his post. Not only was my
inquiry ignored, but other Members’ inquires have also gone un-
answered. Now, the White House has made an “official” announcement
but still has not given an explanation.
Mr. Speaker, I hope that the newly-appointed US Ambassador to
Armenia, Richard Hoagland, will not play the word games of the
White House, and comply with Turkey’s campaign of genocidal denial.
The New York Times editorial on May 16th this year detailed the
dangers to Turkey, and to the world, of that country’s continued
denial of the Armenian Genocide. I just want to read the last
paragraph of that insightful editorial …”The preponderance of
serious scholarship outside Turkey accepts that more than a million
Armenians perished between 1914 and 1925 in a regime-sponsored
campaign. Turkey’s continued refusal to countenance even a
discussion of the issue stands as a major obstacle to restoring
relations with neighboring Armenia and to claiming Turkey’s
rightful place in Europe and the West. It is time for the Turks to
realize that the greater danger to them is denying history.”
Thank you.
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