On April 29, on the occasion of the 110th anniversary of the victims of the Armenian Genocide, a commemoration ceremony took place on the ENAR Palace of the Municipality of Geneva.
The event was organized by the joint initiative of the Council of the Armenian and Armenian and Armenian Organizations of Switzerland (CAAS). The mayor of Geneva Kristina Kittsos, Armenian Ambassador to Switzerland Hasmik Tolmajyan, as well as CAAs President Sargis Shahinyan, former President of the Swiss-Armenians Migranush Baghramyan.
The event was attended by the Federal and High-ranking City and community representatives of Switzerland and Geneva, the UN Office accredited at the UN Office, as well as representatives of the Armenian community.
In his speech, the Mayor of Geneva, the Mayor of Geneva, emphasized that the offer of respect for the victims of the Armenian Genocide is not only the moral duty of all, but also a symbol of justice, universal values and human dignity. He highlighted the denial of denial and the joint commitment to prevent all types of crime, calling for a vigilant guardian of the collective memory, to pursue the condemnation of these crimes and the fight against impunity.
The mayor also stressed that the friendship between the two peoples was marked at the end of the 19th century, expressed in the solidarity shown by the Swiss people towards the Armenian people during the Hamidian massacres. He also mentioned that the friendly connection between Switzerland, especially Geneva, is also expressed in a scientific and cultural platform, which is the presence of the Chair of Armenian Language and Literature at the University of Geneva.
The mayor also touched upon the question of the Armenian prisoners in Azerbaijan after the events on Nagorno Karabakh and the deliberate destruction of the Armenian historical and cultural heritage against them.
In his speech, Ambassador Hasmik Tolmajyan expressed gratitude to the Geneva city authorities for the first time for the commemoration of the victims of the Armenian Genocide. He stressed the importance of the event not only as a tribute to the memory of one and a half million victims and a manifestation of unspeakable suffering and their descendants, but also an expression of collective efforts to prevent the prevention of genocide.
The Ambassador highly assessed the exceptional solidarity of the people of Switzerland, referring to 1896 at that difficult time for the Armenian people. The national petition condemning the massacres of Armenians in the Ottomian Empire (454,290, which made up 50% of the 3 million eligible voters in Switzerland), has remained an overcoming record in the history of Swiss democracy. The Ambassador thanked the selfless role of Swiss political, public and spiritual figures in giving asylum and new life for thousands of people who survived.
The Ambassador also paid tribute to the city of Geneva in 2018 for the monument to the memory of the victims of the Armenian Genocide, the "Memory Flashlights". Right to the "Lamps of Memory" in Geneva, which is considered the capital of Human Rights, is a tribute not only to the memory of the Genocide victims, but also a symbol of survival, Renaissance and a peaceful future.
The Ambassador stressed that despite the ongoing challenges, Armenia is determined to democracy, guided by the vision of justice and peace, and the Republic of Armenia is also a guarantee to prevent the recurrence of tragedy.
