RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has issued a message on the occasion of the 108th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.
“Dear people, dear compatriots,
On April 24, we commemorate the memory of the 1.5 million victims of the Armenian Genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire at the beginning of the 20th century, and tens of thousands of citizens are today marching in a procession of respect, remembrance and reflection towards the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex.
The April 24 march is perhaps the most influential phenomenon that has predetermined and continues to predetermine our reality, an exceptional day for thinking about our history, our past and our future.
What are the young parents walking towards the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex, often holding the hands of small children, thinking, or the grandmothers and grandfathers with greater life experience? They are perhaps reflecting on two questions: why did the Great Calamity take place, and what must be done to preclude its recurrence?
Hundreds and thousands of works have been written about the causes of the Armenian Genocide, and numerous causes and motives have been brought to light. As for the methodology of precluding the recurrence of such a crime, it depends to a great extent on our perceptions of the concepts of “state” and “region.”
The state — only a developed and sovereign state is capable of ensuring our people’s existence and security, and in the process of building the state, everyone has a role to play, through education, work, civic responsibility and respect for the law.
Our strategic choice regarding the region is the following: do we have the will and the capacity to regulate and develop our regional relations, regardless of the fact, or moreover in the circumstance, that the security threats surrounding us are growing due to regional or extra-regional reasons?
Being fully aware of all the difficulties and complexities, our government has decided to take the path of finding a positive answer to that question, because only that path can guarantee security and well-being.
Dear people, dear compatriots,
Today we bow our heads before the memory of the 1.5 million victims of the Armenian Genocide and reflect on the past, the present and the future. And this is the most opportune moment to reflect on the past, the present and the future,” the Prime Minister’s message reads.
