In a letter to President Obama, the Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) expressed its deep concern over Azerbaijan’s attempt to subvert the Administration’s well-intentioned program to create greater access for the American public to the White House through the “We the People” website.  The site invites citizens to post a petition and is intended to give all Americans a way to engage their government on the issues that matter to them.

However, the Azeri government manipulated the process by generating anonymous signatures from non-Americans emanating from Azerbaijan and Turkey.  The Assembly’s letter urged the removal of “these harmful propaganda-based petitions” and to “safeguard against foreign manipulation.”

The Assembly cited multiple news sources establishing the fraudulent nature of the petition drives, including evidence that the Azeri government and Foreign Ministry were directly involved with these petitions.

To mark the occasion of the Sumgait anniversary, the Assembly released a 10-page summary report documenting the Sumgait pogrom and subsequent attacks against the civilian Armenian population in other towns in Azerbaijan, including its capital city of Baku.