It has become a major political controversy, and Barack Obama is a favorite among many Armenians for supporting the cause of recognizing the Armenian Genocide. And Ronald Reagan is often mentioned as having used the word “genocide” in describing the WWI annihilation of western Armenians in the Ottoman Empire.

And despite all the controversy around formally condemning the Armenian genocide as such, no one knew until now that U.S. is on record recognizing the Armenian genocide as early as 1951 – that is three years after the Genocide Convention was adopted.

In its written statement to the International Criminal Court right after WWII, the United States mentioned the Roman persecution of Christians, the Turkish killings of Armenians, and the Nazi murders of Jews and Poles as “outstanding examples” of genocide.  

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE

PLEADINGS, ORAL ARGUMENTS, DOCUMENTS

RESERVATIONS TO THE CONVENTION ON THE PREVENTION

AND PUNISHMENT OF THE CRIME OF GENOCIDE

ADVISORY OPINION OF MAY 28th, 1951

CONTENTS

[…]

PART 1.-REQUEST FOR ADVISORY OPINION AND DOCUMENTS OF THE WRITTEN PROCEEDINGS

[…]

SECTION C-WRITTEN STATEMENTS

[…]

4. – Written statement of the Government of the United States of America . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

[…]

4. WRITTEN STATEMENT OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

[…]

1. The Genocide Convention

The Genocide Convention resulted from the inhuman and barbarous practices which prevailed in certain countries prior to and during World War II, when entire religious, racial and national minority groups were threatened with and subjected to deliberate extermination. The practice of genocide has occurred throughout human history. The Roman persecution of the Christians, the Turkish massacres of Armenians, the extermination of millions of Jews and Poles by the Nazis are outstanding examples of the crime of genocide. This was the background when the General Assembly of the United Nations considered the problem of genocide. Not once, but twice, that body declared unanimously that the practice of genocide is criminal under international law and that States ought to take steps to prevent and punish genocide.

[Source: http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/files/12/11767.pdf ]

The document was pointed out to in a blog operated by an Irish professor. The Armenian Assembly of America informed about the document in a mass e-mail.

This new “discovery” will perhaps make the work of Barack Obama easier in recognizing the Armenian Genocide if he is elected as president. The bottom line is that the U.S. has never denied the Genocide. They know politically they can’t mention it given Turkey’s hysteria. Historically, even scholars on Turkish payroll are now backing up from denial.

And so if Armenians could spend 5% of the efforts they spend on genocide recognition on fighting human trafficking, maybe Armenian girls and women won’t have to be sexual slaves in the UAE and Turkey. Am I changing the topic? Yes I am. Isn’t it time to fight our own problems?