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LOS ANGELES--California Governor Arnold
Schwarzenegger has once again proclaimed the
week of April 19-26 as “Days of Remembrance of
the Armenian Genocide,” the Armenian National
Committee's Western Region offices reported on
Thursday.
“The Armenian American community offers its
deep gratitude for Gov. Schwarzenegger's
declaration and commitment to recognizing the
past so that genocides will not occur in the
future,” said Andrew Kzirian, the executive
director of the Armenian National Committee
Western Region (ANC-WR).
"An important part of our educational efforts
to end the cycle of genocide and raise
awareness of the Armenian Genocide and the
genocide taking place in Darfur is to ensure
that the horrific crimes of the past are not
repeated, “ Kzirian said. “The Governor's
proclamation is quite timely as it comes days
before the eagerly anticipated Armenian
Genocide statement by President Obama.”
With President Obama's home state of Hawaii
officially recognizing the Armenian Genocide
just days ago while the President visited
Turkey, the community is confident that the
President will be clear in his message on
April 24, Kzirian added
The proclamation reads in part, “Four years
ago I signed a bill that permanently
recognized the Days of Remembrance of the
Armenian Genocide. This week, we honor that
commitment as we stand with our Armenian
friends and neighbors here and across the
world in remembering and acknowledging the
genocide, the families it destroyed and the
history it changed. We do not like to recall
such sorrows, but we must, so that we can
learn from history and renew our efforts to
make sure nothing like this ever happens
again.”
This is the twelfth proclamation issued by the
Office of the Governor of California in the
past thirteen years, and supplements the
seventeen proclamations by the California
Assembly and Senate dating back to 1991.
The Armenian National Committee - Western
Region is the largest and most influential
Armenian American grassroots advocacy
organization in the Western United States.
Working in coordination with a network of
offices, chapters, and supporters throughout
the Western United States and affiliated
organizations around the country, the ANC-WR
promotes awareness of the Armenian American
community on a broad range of issues.
The full text
of the proclamation is included below.
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT
STATE OF CALIFORNIA
PROCLAMATION
On the night of April 24, 1915, more than 200
leaders in the Armenian community, in the city
known today as Istanbul, were arrested. Sent
to prison, most were executed, beginning a
horrible, systemic killing and forced
relocation of the Armenian people that would
last until 1923. During these years, the
government of the Ottoman Empire claimed the
lives of 1.5 million Armenians and forced
500,000 more from their homeland.
Those who escaped death had to flee, and many
of them settled right here in California.
They and their descendants have become leaders
in all walks of life and have made
extraordinary contributions to our state.
While their presence has been and continues to
be a great blessing to California, it also
reminds us of the incredible evils that
brought them far from their ancestral homes.
Four years ago I signed a bill that
permanently recognized the Days of Remembrance
of the Armenian Genocide. This week, we honor
that commitment as we stand with our Armenian
friends and neighbors here and across the
world in remembering and acknowledging the
genocide, the families it destroyed and the
history it changed. We do not like to recall
such sorrows, but we must, so that we can
learn from history and renew our efforts to
make sure nothing like this ever happens
again.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER,
Governor of the State of California, do hereby
proclaim April 19-26, 2009, as “Days of
Remembrance of the Armenian Genocide.”
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my
hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of
California to be affixed this 13th day of
April 2009.
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