Support for Genocide Resolution Looks Shaky
"If the vote were held today, I would not want to bet my house on the outcome."
That's what Rep. Brad Sherman, a California Democrat, told The New York Times about the chances of the House passing a resolution that labels as genocide the mass killings of Armenians in Turkey in the World War I era. The resolution passed 27-21 last week in the House Foreign Affairs Committee and appeared to have broad support for a full vote.
But some of that support has disappeared under intense lobbying efforts by the White House and the Turkish government. The Times reports that almost a dozen lawmakers changed their position on the measure in a 24-hour period ending Tuesday night. Even some members who originally signed on as co-sponsors have withdrawn support.
The Los Angeles Times points out that one of Speaker Nancy Pelosi's closest allies, Rep. John Murtha, is working to defeat the measure. Pelosi has said she supports it.
But why is this resolution making Turkey so upset? Belinda Cooper, a senior fellow at the World Policy Institute, told Melissa Block on All Things Considered that Turkey sees the Armenian deaths in the context of a civil war during the breakup of an empire. Turks also see the word "genocide" as comparing them to the Nazis, Cooper said.
For Armenians, this traumatic event has been passed down through generations, and they see recognition of it as important, especially because it isn't recognized by Turkey, she said.
9:58 AM ET | 10-17-2007 | permalink
