April 24 has been celebrated in France since 2019 as the Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day of 1915. 106-th anniversary events were held in almost all major cities in France. In Paris, French President Emanuel Macron, Armenian Ambassador to France Hasmik Tolmajian, Co-Chairs of the Coordinating Council of Armenian Organizations of France, and Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo paid tribute to the memory of the consecrated victims of the Armenian Genocide at Komitas statue.
In the afternoon, the statue of Komitas was surrounded by protesters at a rally convened by the Coordinating Council of Armenian Organizations in France. Armenian, French politicians and public figures, participating in the rally, called on Turkey and the world to recognize the Armenian Genocide. They demanded form the Aliyev-Erdogan couple to release the prisoners of war of the Second Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) War immediately.
“The issue of recognizing the Armenian Genocide is a key issue for every Armenian, especially after the recent war. This circumstance shows that it is not only a war against the Armenians in Artsakh, but also a clash of civilizations, which reaches the door of Europe,” Remi Makinedjian, President of the Armenian Movement says.
“Today the fact that Turkey goes unpunished is a big problem. Turkey threatens Armenia, it wants to implement the Pan-Turkic project, destroy Armenian culture and values. On the other hand, Turkey also threatens the stability of Europe. We are now witnessing that Turkey threatens the territorial integrity of the countries,” Deborah Zabunian, Deputy Mayor of Alfortville says.
“I learned about the Armenian Genocide from Charles Aznavour. I had the opportunity to travel to Armenia with Charles and I saw how sensitive he was to this issue. Throughout his life, Charles fought for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide all over the world. Recognition of the Armenian genocide is a step to prevent future genocides,” says piano player Eric Bershod.
“No reason can justify the genocide. Yes, today we can say that the Turks have not changed, they want to colonize Armenia, that tendency was obvious in Artsakh. The Armenian Genocide is a reality, Armenians are our friends,” Jeanne d'Hauteserre, Mayor of the 8th arrondissement of Paris says.