Tuesday, April 21, 2015

US Muslim organizations: Don't dare to call a genocide done by our Muslim brothers a genocide

The text below is copied from the site of the US Consul of Muslim Organizations and is not edited in any way.

"USCMO STATEMENT ON 1915 TURKISH-ARMENIAN EVENTS

(Washington, DC, April 20, 2015) -- The US Council of Muslim Organizations (USCMO) the largest umbrella group of mainstream Muslim American organizations is aware of the painful history of over 30 nations fighting for over 4 years and the loss of over 37 million lives in World War I, including those of the Armenians.

As April 24 comes near, we share the pain suffered by Armenians during this period. We also believe that any acknowledgment by religious or political leaders of the tragedy that befell Armenians should be balanced, constructive and must also recognize Turkish and Muslim suffering.

In this respect, characterizing the events of 1915 as genocide without proper investigation of these events by independent historians will not only jeopardize the establishment of a just memory pertaining to these events, but will also damage the efforts aimed at achieving reconciliation between Turks and Armenians.

As Americans, we are concerned about alienating a key ally, Turkey, through one-sided declarations that political and religious leaders have made on this subject. The events of 100 years ago should be based on a consensus among historians and academicians with access to archives and documents from that era.

As the only Muslim-majority member of NATO and current President of the G-20 Summit, Turkey has taken on a unique regional and global leadership role in ensuring peace and prosperity for all. Our government has been closely cooperating with the Turkish government on defeating ISIS while also alleviating the suffering of Syrian refugees.

While Muslim Americans sympathize deeply with the loss of Armenian lives in 1915, we also believe that reconciliation must take into honest account the broader human tragedy of World War I. Muslim Americans expect our leaders to act accordingly to ensure that American-Turkish strategic relations are not damaged by a one-sided interpretation of the 1915 events."

This is the way US Muslim leaders have chosen to mark the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. These same people also have the audacity to complain of Islamophobia!

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Maya,

" proper investigation of these events by independent historians"; I always love that argument; "We need to do more research" as if 100 years wasn't enough. Otherwise, it is the usual politics before justice. Thanks for sharing. Bill