Armenian Genocide is important political and humanitarian issue in the memory of Europe

March 3, 2010 - 16:44 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenian Genocide Museum hosted a presentation of human rights expert, Queen's Counsel Geoffrey Robertson’s “Was there an Armenian Genocide?” report in Armenian Wednesday, March 3.

“Armenian Genocide recognition issue has recently intensified in Great Britain, with Geoffrey Robertson’s report significantly contributing to the matter,” European Integration NGO chairman Karen Bekaryan said at the presentation.

Armenian Genocide Museum director Hayk Demoyan in turn noted that the Great Britain, as the country which played a significant role in Genocide recognition issue, was selected to implement the report. Hayk Demoyan characterized Genocide as an important political and humanitarian issue in the memory of Europe.

“Armenia has to make it clear to the international community that normalization of ties with Turkey does not spell termination of international recognition process,” he emphasized.

Dwelling on Armenia-Turkey Protocols, Demoyan noted: “If it were not for the Protocols in question, H.Res.252 wouldn’t probably have been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives.”

The Armenian Genocide

The Armenian Genocide (1915-23) was the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I. It was characterized by massacres and deportations, involving forced marches under conditions designed to lead to the death of the deportees, with the total number of deaths reaching 1.5 million.

The majority of Armenian Diaspora communities were formed by the Genocide survivors.

Present-day Turkey denies the fact of the Armenian Genocide, justifying the atrocities as “deportation to secure Armenians”. Only a few Turkish intellectuals, including Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk and scholar Taner Akcam, speak openly about the necessity to recognize this crime against humanity.

The Armenian Genocide was recognized by Uruguay, Russia, France, Lithuania, Italy, 45 U.S. states, Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon, Argentina, Belgium, Austria, Wales, Switzerland, Canada, Poland, Venezuela, Chile, Bolivia, the Vatican, Luxembourg, Brazil, Germany, the Netherlands, Paraguay, Sweden, Venezuela, Slovakia, Syria, Vatican, as well as the European Parliament and the World Council of Churches.