Judy Chu: America has a duty to recognize Armenian Genocide to remind the world that mass murder and destruction must not be ignored
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YEREVAN, MAY 24, ARMENPRESS: U.S.Representative Judy Chu cosponsorsArmenian Genocide Truth and Justice Act, a new measure calling upon the President to build upon the U.S. record of having recognized the Armenian Genocide by working toward improved Armenian-Turkish relations based upon the Republic of Turkey's full acknowledgement of the facts and ongoing consequences of the Armenian Genocide, and a fair, just, and comprehensive international resolution of this crime. As reports Armenpress referring to Armenian national Committeeof America, Representative Chu released the following statement:
“The Armenian Genocide claimed 1.5 million lives. Able-bodied men were massacred or forced into labor. Women, children, the elderly and the sick were sent on death marches that spanned hundreds of miles. Those who survived were often separated from their loved ones, and left behind the only homes they had ever known.The only way to describe such atrocities is genocide. We owe it to those who were lost, their loved ones, and the few remaining survivors to push for proper recognition of this event in the international community.I am committed to seeing Congress do just that by passing this resolution. I am proud to have co-sponsored this legislation every Congress, and will continue to do so until it receives the vote that the Armenian people deserve. America’s commitment to human rights is absolute, and we have a duty to recognize this tragedy, and to remind the world that mass murder and destruction must not be ignored.”
The Armenian Genocide Truth and Justice Act, introduced by Representatives Michael Grimm (R-NY), Adam Schiff (D-CA), David Valadao (R-CA) and Frank Pallone (D-NJ), reflects and reinforces previous U.S. affirmation of the Armenian Genocide as a crime of genocide, citing the U.S. Government's May 28, 1951 written statement to the International Court of Justice regarding the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, President Ronald Reagan's April 22, 1981 Proclamation and Congressional adoption of Armenian Genocide legislation in 1975 and 1984.