Anglican Diocese of Melbourne
Armenian Apostolic Church of Australia
Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC-AU)
Australian Assyrian Chaldean Syriac Advocacy Network
Assyrian Australian Social Development Club
Assyrian Church of the East Australia
Assyrian Democratic Movement
Assyrian Democratic Organisation
Assyrian National Council - Australia
Australian Assyrian Arts and Literature Foundation
Australian Hellenic Council
Australian Tigray Alliance
Beth Nahrain Assyria Association
Cypriot Community of Melbourne and Victoria
Darebin Ethnic Communities Council
Educational Institution Hellenism of Anatolia
Federation of Pontian Associations Australia
Federation of Greek Elderly Citizens
Food For Thought Network
Greek Australian Cultural League of Melbourne
Hellenic Writers Association
Jewish Hellenic Association of Victoria
Maronite Eparchy of Australia New Zealand and Oceania
Pan Australian Justice For Cyprus
Pansamian Brotherhood of Melbourne Pythagoras
Pan Macedonian Association of Melbourne and Victoria
Phoenix the New Generation
Pontic Educational and Cultural Association of Melbourne Victoria “Akrites Tou Pontou”
The Australian Federation of Pontian Associations
The Greek community of Victoria
The Pan-Epirotic Federation of Australia
The United Australian Lebanese Movement
The Young Assyrians
Return to Anatolia
Victorian Council of Churches
The letter from the Victorian Council of Churches President, Rev. Deacon Dr Joseph Leach and Executive Officer, Rev Dr Sandy Boyce called on members of parliament to take a “principled stance” on this issue.
The letter read: “Recognition of these Genocides is not only important to affirm history but also serves as a means to reconcile the past and provide a sense of closure to the descendants of genocide survivors. In a broader sense, recognition also plays an integral part in preventing future genocides - a view that genocide scholars widely support.”
Armenian National Committee of Australia Michael Kolokossian said, “We are confident that such a motion has overwhelming support in both houses from all sides of politics and that the motion’s passage is simply a matter of time.”
Australian Hellenic Council - Victoria President Peter Stefanidis said: “We know the Victorian Parliament stands for truth and justice and promotes tolerance through banning the use of Nazi insignia and fostering an environment of reconciliation for Indigenous Australians. However, there are certain forces pushing it is a parliament of Genocide denial. It can not be both.’’
Kos Samaras, former assistant state secretary of the Victorian Labor Party has come out in defence of the motion slamming attacks against the Victorian Greens from ‘certain sections’ of the community.
Chris Crewther, the Member for Mornington has also publicly written on X to highlight the broad support for the motion and said, “There are times in politics and life, that one has to have the moral courage to do the right thing, regardless of political considerations or self-interest. That’s why Parliament needs to support the upcoming motion to recognise the genocide of Greeks, Armenians and Assyrians.”
The Joint Justice Initiative spearheading a future motion was launched in February 2020 at Australia's Parliament House and featured the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding by the Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC-AU), Assyrian National Council - Australia (ANC) and Australian Hellenic Council (AHC), which declares Australia's recognition of the Armenian, Assyrian and Greek Genocides as a priority on behalf of their communities.
