Padua hosts photo exhibition in commemoration of Genocide 95th anniversary

April 23, 2010 - 13:01 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Padua city hall hosted a presentation of Armenia - Sacred Land acclaimed Italian photographer Graziella Vigo's book, followed by photo exhibition organized in commemoration of the 95th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.

Opening the event, Mayor Flavio Zanonato stressed that Padua was the first Italian city to recognize the Armenian Genocide. RA Ambassador to Italy Ruben Karapetyan, in turn, gave high assessment to Mayor’s position on the Genocide issue.

Italy's political and cultural figures as well as Armenian Diaspora representatives were invited to participate, RA Foreign Ministry press office reported.

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.