Laszlo Kover commemorates Armenian Genocide

May 17, 2011 - 18:15 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - On May 17, a Hungarian delegation led by Speaker of the country’s National Assembly Laszlo Kover visited the Armenian Genocide Memorial to lay wreath and flowers.

Besides, Kover toured the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute to familiarize himself with the exhibits and left a note in the Commemoration Book.

Kover also planted a fir at the Memorial Alley of Tsitsernakaberd Complex, the RA NA press service 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.