WASHINGTON—Susan Karamanian, a leading expert on international law who serves as Associate Dean for International and Comparative Legal Studies at George Washington University’s Law School, will explore realizing the legal rights of the Armenian nation during her presentation at Armenian Cause 2.0, the Armenian National Committee of America’s (ANCA) conference being held in Washington, DC between June 24th and 27th.
“We are very pleased to announce that Associate Dean Susan Karamanian will be joining with us at Armenian Cause 2.0 to share her keen insights and sharp analysis of the rights of the Armenian nation and the responsibilities of the international community regarding a truthful and just resolution of the Armenian Genocide,” said Aram Hamparian, executive director of the ANCA. “As a leader in the field of international law, Dean Karamanian, will draw on her far-ranging expertise and experience in addressing avenues for securing justice for the Armenian nation.”
Joining Dean Karamanian, a former Rhodes Scholar, as part of the rights and reparations discussion will be Kate Nahapetian, the ANCA’s Government Affairs Director, who has litigated human rights class actions and documented abuses for the prosecution against General Augusto Pinochet of Chile. Nahapetian will address issues ranging from the ANCA’s role in supporting Armenian Genocide-related class actions in U.S. courts to the treaty rights of the Armenian nation. Among the specific avenues that will be discussed during this presentation is the right of the Republic of Armenia to bring reparations claims before the International Court of Justice.
Dean Karamanian has a B.S. from Auburn University, a B.A. from Oxford University, and a J.D. from the University of Texas. She joined the George Washington University Law School in 2000, after a 14-year career at Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell, LLP in Dallas, Texas. While in private practice, Dean Karamanian represented foreign and domestic clients in a variety of commercial disputes. She also maintained an active pro bono docket, in which she represented inmates on Texas death row in their post-conviction appeals.
Dean Karamanian has served in many leadership capacities in the American Society of International Law, including having been its vice-president from 1996 to 1998. She is a member of the board of the Center for American and International Law, the Texas Appleseed Foundation, the Washington Foreign Law Society, and the Friends of the Law Library of Congress.
In 2009 she was elected President of the Washington Foreign Law Society. A Rhodes Scholar, she previously served on the board of the Association of American Rhodes Scholars. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the American Council on Germany and a fellow of the American Bar Foundation and the Texas Bar Foundation.
Armenian Cause 2.0’s full schedule of educational workshops and interactive presentations—including speakers such as former U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John Evans and POLITICO National Politics Editor Charles Mahtesian—will be complemented by social and networking opportunities, such as a dinner reception at the Armenian Embassy hosted by Ambassador Tatoul Markarian. Break-out sessions will include workshops on advocacy, media, social media and elections.
To register for the conference and take advantage of the special ANCA hotel rate of only $149/night plus tax, visit www.anca.org/conference by Friday, June 3rd.
I appreciate the increasing focus in our community on reparation. There are really two separate venues for this initiative. The first and most demanding are the legal and governmental channels to navigate as we emerge from the “there’s more to this than simple recogniton”phase. The other is preparing the Armenian community to allocate the resources and sustained energy for this next step.
Our people have been self-programmed to thinking that the battle is won with recognition. i realize that a substantial number of Armenians understand that recognition is a means and not an end; but for many Armenians the recognition of the Genocide is their primary identifier with their heritage. These types of professional conferences and the visibility that comes from the events themselves, are fundamental to raising our consciousness as a people. As our political confidence grows, recognition will become our focus. In 1965, as a young teen,i recall energy in the community for what is now callednow the reawakening period of Genocide recognition and remembrance.
i believe that we will look back at these years as the emergence of the reparation phase of our quest for justice. One does not necessarliy precede the other. They do exist in parallel. I applaud the ANCA for pursuing this strategy.