CANBERRA: The peak public affairs body of the Armenian-Australian community has written to both the Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader of the country, requesting they accurately characterise the massacres of 1.5 million Armenians between 1915-1923 as genocide, reported the Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC-AU).
As Armenian-Australians plan to commemorate the 108th Anniversary of the 1915-1923 Armenian Genocide at events in cities across Australia for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, they remain expectant that the leaders of Australia’s largest political parties will stand with their community and the over 34 countries worldwide who have recognised the massacres of Armenians as genocide.
The Armenian National Committee of Australia thanked Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for acknowledging the Armenian Genocide with great sympathy and respect as Opposition Leader in 2022, however encouraged him to take the final step and utilise the word genocide in his 2023 statement.
In 2022, as Opposition Leader, Anthony Albanese called on Turkey “to come to terms with the historical facts about the events of 1915” and acknowledged US President Joe Biden’s recognition of the atrocities committed against the Armenian people as genocide.
“It is time for an Australian leader to deliver much-needed closure to our community, and that can come from a Prime Minister who has underpinned the importance of Australia's respect for human rights in Australia’s broader foreign policy issues. We are hopeful that this respect will extend to recognition of the Armenian Genocide,” said ANC-AU Executive Director Michael Kolokossian.
The Armenian National Committee of Australia has also written to the Leader of the Opposition, The Hon. Peter Dutton who assumed his party’s top job back in May 2022 following the Australian Federal Election.
This year, will be the first opportunity for Dutton to address the Armenian-Australian community as leader, on the occasion marking the Armenian Genocide. He was urged by the ANC-AU to accurately characterise the massacres as genocide, following in the footsteps of former opposition Leaders, including Tony Abbott and Kim Beazley.
On Sunday 23rd of April 2023, members from the Armenian-Australian, Assyrian-Australian and Greek-Australian communities will rally together in Sydney’s Central Business District for the annual #MarchForJustice in another attempt to have the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader head the calls of local Australians and recognise this crime against humanity as Genocide.
The Australian National Commemoration of the 108th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide will reveal the positions of the leaders of both major parties on this issue.
