George Bush and the Armenian Genocide

Two days ago, I lauded George Bush for having the courage to meet publicly with the Dalai Lama. Today I am embarassed to note that the American Congress has succumbed to the pressure exerted upon it by the Bush White House by refusing to recognize the Armenian Genocide. I am not an expert on the topic of the Armenian Genocide. What I have read however is that "approximately 1.5 million Armenians were killed by the Turks during World War 1" (source: Tom Segev, Haaretz.com, Thurs. Oct. 18). Wikipedida notes that 22 countries including Canada have officially recognized the Armenian Genocide. It also reports that Elie Wiesel Foundation  for Humanity "produced a letter signed by 53 Nobel Laureates reaffirming the Genocide Scholars's conclusion that the 1915 killings of Armenians constituted genocide."  There is a lot of other material on the internet about the Armenian Genocide. There is widespread consensus on the topic  -  there was an Armenian Genocide.  So why did George Bush not do the right thing and allow Congress to approve a bill  that recognized the Armenian Genocide which had been passed by its own House Committee on Foreign Affairs? And why did Congress not snub its nose at Bush and pass it despite his disapproval? The obvious answer of course is that Bush and the Congress did not want to offend Turkey and lose its support in the war against terror. It was however prepared to offend China who is needed even more by the U.S. in its battle against the terror state Iran.  This is indeed curious and even perverse. The lesson in all this is of course quite simple. "Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to  deceive".  Contrary to the views of some, "symbolic" gestures are important.  Principles above politics.. especially when the principle is so profound. We are not talking here about a compromise on a tax treaty, a trade-off on a bill to support pork producers if someone supports your wheat farmers. We are talking about the killing of 1.5 million people. Recognizing genocide for what it is will not bring the dead back. But it will do justice to their memory and let others know that there will be no negotiating or compromising on the issue. Shame on Bush and shame on the US Congress.  They really dropped the ball on this one. 

Comments

[Russ Brown]

It's not obvious to me why a legislative body in North America needs to "recognize" an historical event that transpired 90 years ago in some far off place. Even the late Hrant Dink, the Armenian-Turkish journalist (who recognized the genocide) felt these recognition campaigns (there was also one in France) don't really do anything. There's no public policy question at stake that I can see (and certainly no U.S. public policy question), particularly now that both the Turks and the Armenians have their own state which are at peace with each other.

I disagree that symbolic gestures matter. I agree with Vaclav Havel (who as Czech President resisted pressure to apologize for the postwar expulsion of 2,500,000 Sudeten Germans). What is more important, he says, is to alleviate the consequences of a wretched event. U.S. congressional "recognition" does nothing of the sort. They might as well "recognize" the sun and the moon.

[Russ Brown]

Lewis, even your fellow travellers are not with you on this.

Mark Steyn, while being interviewed by Hugh Hewitt)(the transcript is at http://hughhewitt.townhall.com/talkradio/transcripts/Transcript.aspx?ContentGuid=b3e2f038-929a-4b8b-a908-7928d20c2c44, describes the original "recognition" initiative as "cheap political posturing of the worst kind" by Congress.

[Turan Baysal]

Yesterday, 22.10.2007, the prime minister of Turkey came to Oxford Union to talk about current situation in Middle East (N.Iraq and PKK terror) and to answer the questions of uni students. Mr Erdogan told the Oxford debating society about his (country's) views on so-claimed Armenian genocide. He said 'our archives are open to historians and academics (to Armenian scholars as well). If Armenia is telling the truth they should open their archives so that this matter could be discussed unbiasedly by the experts without involving politics. So? I guess Turkey will wait for a long time for this to happen as I believe that Armenia will never be brave enough to face facts...

[Russ Brown]

Well, I hadn't really expected Lewis's post (or my comment) to bring out the loonie fringe, but I guess it has.

Lookit. I do not intend to get into a pissing contest about whether a systematic Ottoman campaign of murdering Armenians occurred during WWI. There is enough eyewitness testimony (including from U.S. diplomats) that it did.

My point is that if segments of the Turkish populace like Mr. Baysal wishes to deny historical reality, they as autonomous, free beings are at liberty to do so. And we, as autonomous, free beings are at liberty to recognize them as the misguided nutcases that they care. But our legislatures have no standing to do so. Their mandate is to legislate, not to "recognize" (or in Ankara's case "not recognize") certain historical realities.

[Russ Brown]

I should add - it occurs to me that Mr. Baysal's comment might be taken as lending weight to the argument that legislatures ought to "recognize" certain historical events as having actually happened.

Not so. The proper way to deal with the Mr. Baysals of the world is not to have meaningless incantations emanating from legislatures in faroff places to the effect that historical event X "happened". The proper response by individual citizens (assuming they maintain some sense of historical reality) to the likes of Mr. Baysal is not for them to write their MP demanding some legislative denunciation. Rather, they should just say that he is a demented nationalist fruitcake, and leave it at that. This is not a matter for legislators. Their job is to make sure the garbage is picked up on time, that the village square statues are polished, etc., etc.

If we look to legislatures for moral guidance, we are bound to be disappointed.

[baciu]

hi,can anybody help my, i am o lawyer in Romania, and i 'd like to know haw can (what conditions) i can study in US and be a international lawyer

T...., you!

[Hye7]

Loved this blog thankyou....

And to the person who asked that Armenian archives be opened: perhaps if you looked outside of the Turkish media, you would see that Armenian archives ARE OPEN!!! Maybe if Turkey would stop jailing and assassinating Nobel Prize winners or authors for talking about the Genocide (i.e. Orhan Pamuk and Hrant Dink), Armenians would take Turkish suggestions more seriously. See what Turkish scholar, Taner Akcam, has to say about Turkey's false attempts to settle this matter:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sP3YxCGdD9E&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZi6xg7Pkng&feature=related

[Turan Baysal]

Dear hye7(?) and all the rest above...

Firstly I didn't think that my message would cause such a big reaction among some people. Secondly I am not opposing those who claim it was a historical reality nor am I supporting some exaggerated figures and definitions that people tend to utter. If you totally believe/disbelieve in Armenian genocide and are thinking what the heck I am still talking about, then you do not need to read the rest of this message.

Mr Brown wrote that 'There is enough eyewitness testimony (including from U.S. diplomats) that it did.'
There is 'enough'? (enough is not a definitive nor a conclusive word in science) He wasn't specific about what U.S. diplomats he was referring to...Can they confirm that they were in Dogu Anadolu at the time and they clearly witnessed what happened there? What evidence did they put forward to support their testimonial?

To some extent Hye7(?) is right.Yes, in Turkey writers like Orhan Pamuk (we only have ONE Nobel Prize winner by the way) or Elif Safak etc, are not being well understood especially by some nationalistic political party leaders and their small number of supporters. They (indeed anyone)can use the article 301 to to bring charges against them (anyone) but imprisonment is a very rare case indeed.(Expressions of thought intended to criticize shall not constitute a crime)
Neither Orhan Pamuk nor E. Safak is in prison. As far as I know this article (301) is being updated and in the future it won't be easy to bring charges against individuals .But hey, having said that what is the situation in some states in Europe? Today denial of Armenian genocide(?) in France and Switzerland is punishable by imprisonment.Do you call this freedom of speech?

Armenian archives are NOT OPEN yet according to Turkish media. Hurriyet, one of the most reputable daily newspapers in Turkey wrote on 31.12.2007 that Armenian Parliament came up with 3 pre-conditions to start the talks.

1-Armenian Revolutionary Federation Bureau's Political Affairs Office director Kiro Manoyan demanded redrawing the borders according to Treaty of Sèvres (which cuts off the eastern region of Turkey incl Mount Ararat)...

This super pre-condition sounds crazy and may inflict even worse problems into the region. (It might bring back ASALA,an Armenian born terrorist group which claimed tens of Turkish diplomats' lives in 70's and 80's and empower the atrocious acts of PKK, another Marxist-Leninist terror group which has claimed thousands of innocent lives already)

2-The former Armenian ambassador of Canada claimed a sum as war compensation (about 14.5billion US dollars) to be paid.

3-NA deputy and chairman of committee Armen Rustamyan said negotiations will start after 301 is abolished.

On the other hand Turkey wants Armenia to respect his and neighbouring countries' borders and not to play genocide card as a pre-condition before the talks.

As long as politics is involved, when and how this problem will resolved I do not know. One thing I know is I would like to welcome my friends without any pre-judgement or condition.

Lastly, I am truly sorry about the death of Hrant Dink who was murdered by a 17 year old boy. At his funeral, one hundred thousand mourners (turks and some armenians) marched in protest of the assassination, chanting "We are all Armenians" and "We are all Hrant Dink".

Because every each of us is a part of a whole; not just the segments of a populace.

[Turan Baysal]

Sorry Hye7(?)

I forgot to say that I have already looked outside of Turkish media but couldn't find satisfactory information but Armenian propaganda about how the Turks killed X-numbered of Armenian people (well no body talks about how many turks got killed in the first world war?)..etc etc..

By the way TRT, the national tv channel of Turkey, is going to broadcast in Armenian as well as 8 different dialects and languages.

I hope to see this kind of friendly and constructive approach one day started from our neighbors as well.

God bless all

Turan

[ali mohammed mariche]

MOHAMMED MARICHE ALI
1 rue de la chapelle 57000
sablon metz france

E.MAIL:maricheali57000@hot mail.fr

TO THE DIRECTOR


I would like to subscribe in your institute to prepare a dedgree in criminal sciences so as to improve my knowldge in this field and have a better performance in my job in algeria .

I'd like to inform you that i graduated from tizi ouzou university ,faculty of law ,in 2001 from i had a trainning of layer at the university of algiers where i got the degree of advocatus .

I passed the master exam in the same year ,in the speciality of business law i interrupted my
studies because i enrolled at the national institute magistate where i got the degree of magistrate ,prosecuter at el harrach court in district of algiers judicial council .

I also hold a diplom in informatics ,after my studies at u.f.c university .concerning my mastery of english ,i had an english laguage course al flc (foreign laguage center ),level 6 .i also passed the tofel in may 2007; at the american embassy section 4 in algiers .


expecting apositive rely very soon ;i remain yours .faithfully; mohammed mariche ali