U.S. needs Armenian Genocide recognition the most

March 3, 2010 - 16:13 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - "The upcoming debate of the Armenian Genocide Resolution in the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs has inspired the Armenian Diaspora. In the Resolution the tragic events of 1915-23 in the Ottoman Empire are estimated as Genocide, " Harutyun Arakelyan, chairman of the board of Armenian Democratic Liberal Party told a press conference in Yerevan. According to Arakelyan, Turkey applied to the Jewish lobby organizations in the United States in order to prevent the adoption of the resolution, but had a hard failure, motivated by the statement that the U.S. Congress is not the place for editing the history.

Arakelyan noted that the recognition of the Armenian Genocide is required to the United States most of all. “We need to address this issue in the framework of international law, that is, the International Court in The Hague," he said.

Turkey has committed a crime against humanity and it should be brought to justice in the International Court.

The Armenian Genocide

The Armenian Genocide (1915-23) was the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I. It was characterized by massacres and deportations, involving forced marches under conditions designed to lead to the death of the deportees, with the total number of deaths reaching 1.5 million.

The majority of Armenian Diaspora communities were formed by the Genocide survivors.

Present-day Turkey denies the fact of the Armenian Genocide, justifying the atrocities as “deportation to secure Armenians”. Only a few Turkish intellectuals, including Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk and scholar Taner Akcam, speak openly about the necessity to recognize this crime against humanity.

The Armenian Genocide was recognized by Uruguay, Russia, France, Lithuania, Italy, 45 U.S. states, Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon, Argentina, Belgium, Austria, Wales, Switzerland, Canada, Poland, Venezuela, Chile, Bolivia, the Vatican, Luxembourg, Brazil, Germany, the Netherlands, Paraguay, Sweden, Venezuela, Slovakia, Syria, Vatican, as well as the European Parliament and the World Council of Churches.

Ramkavar party

The Ramkavar party(before 1921 it was known as the Armenakan party), or the Armenian Democratic Liberal party, is an Armenian political party in Armenia and Lebanon. It was established in the Ottoman Empire by Mekertich Portukalian in Van in 1885. The Armenakan party was of the first parties that was established in the Ottoman Empire by Armenians. At the Armenian parliamentary elections on 25 May 2003, the party won 2.9 % of popular votes and no seats.