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Acknowledging The Armenian Genocide

Submitted by Irfan Khawaja, Oct 15, 2007 11:01

Before the House pronounces on Ottoman history, I'd like to see some resolutions on the following:

1. Was the U.S. guilty of genocide with respect to the Native Americans between, say, 1607 and 1907?

2. Was Britain guilty of genocide in Bengal, 1943?

3. Was Israel guilty of ethnic cleansing in implementing Plan Dalet during the 1947-1949 Arab-Israeli war?

4. Was West Pakistan guilty of genocide during its 1971 war with East Pakistan?

5. Does Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX), a current presidential candidate, deserve censure for denying or minimizing Iraqi responsibility for the chemical weapons attack on Halabja during his 2002 speech against the Iraq war (easily downloaded by a Google search on "Ron Paul" and "Halabja")?

I'm sure our allies Britain, Israel, and Pakistan would enjoy resolutions on 2, 3, and 4 as much as the Turkish government is enjoying the one on the Armenian genocide. I'm sure Rep. Paul would love a resolution on 5, and a resolution on 1 would surely look like an attempt at moral-historical even-handedness.

I'd like someone to explain to me why a vote on Ottoman history is more important than a vote on any of these topics. If they're all equally important, why not debate them all? (I'm particularly interested to know why events in the Ottoman Empire 90 years ago are more important to the House of Representatives than a speech given on the House floor five years ago, i.e., item 5 above). At this rate, why not turn Congress into a full-time debating society and absolve it entirely of its constitutional duty to pass legislation? Or maybe they can debate this historical question: Did the Constitution of 1787 suggest that Congress should spend its time passing resolutions on historical controversies?

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Other reader comments on this article

Comment	By	Date
why should US support the turkish denial of Armenian genocide for anothet 85 years ? [MORE]	eddy	Oct 17, 2007 11:17
This article was excellent. Thank you for bringing to the surface the extent of the atrocities being committed by human... [MORE]	Susan Norsigian	Oct 16, 2007 21:05
It's a huge mistake saying that there is no dispute. Indeed, so-called genocide is not proven by archives and historians.... [MORE]	Batuhan Unal	Oct 16, 2007 20:32
Mr. Ibrahim, Thank you for the article. [MORE]	Rich	Oct 16, 2007 11:49
I think a good question is: Why does modern Turkey resist apologizing for what the Ottoman Empire did in 1915?... [MORE]	James Osborn	Oct 16, 2007 11:28
the armenian genocide is crime ageinist humanity.the turkey mast be condemned by oll the world. [MORE]	gagik from spain	Oct 16, 2007 11:14
Thank you for the article...very interesting...I agree. -Its been 92 years...let us have some dignity. [MORE]	Esther	Oct 16, 2007 01:34
As the daughter of a survivor of the Armenian Genocide, these words touched me deeply.I I thank Mr. Ibrahim from... [MORE]	Zabelle Vartanian	Oct 15, 2007 22:54
The other day I was contemplating Armenian allegation of genocide against Turkey, and I began to think about the actual... [MORE]	Deniz Celik	Oct 15, 2007 14:19
"Indeed, Prime Minister Erdogan of Turkey, in protesting Western pressure to own up to the massacres of Armenian Christians in... [MORE]	Lynn	Oct 15, 2007 14:01
Whether there was a genocide committed by the Ottoman regime is hotly disputed between historians. Those who have concluded no... [MORE]	Lynn	Oct 15, 2007 13:54
Kudos to Mr. Ibrahim's "Acknowledging The Armenian Genocide" on Oct. 15. He is perfectly right in recognizing that this resolution... [MORE]	harry	Oct 15, 2007 12:50
Glad to see at least one media person has the intelligence and balls to call it as it is. Also,... [MORE]	Richard Moomjian	Oct 15, 2007 11:26
Before the House pronounces on Ottoman history, I'd like to see some resolutions on the following: 1. Was the U.S. guilty...	Irfan Khawaja	Oct 15, 2007 11:01
Mr. Ibrahim writes: "America has moral and strategic purposes in denouncing the massacre of 1.5 million Armenians in 1915 as... [MORE]	Chasli	Oct 15, 2007 08:50
Muslims Against Sharia commend House Democrats and Speaker Pelosi for pressing ahead with an Armenian genocide bill. Republican opposition to... [MORE]	Muslims Against Sharia	Oct 15, 2007 03:13
all previous US administrations have handled Turkey with kid gloves. It is time to say we expect some adherence to... [MORE]	Joseph Cole	Oct 15, 2007 02:01

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Acknowledging The Armenian Genocide