SYDNEY: The Armenian-Australian community will hold a protest outside the Sydney office of Australia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (DFAT) on Thursday 19th of January 2022, at 9 Castlereagh Street between 1-2PM.
The protest location has been chosen as the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) building in Sydney to directly call on Foreign Minister Penny Wong and the Anthony Albanese Government to condemn Azerbaijan’s current blockade of 120,000 Armenian civilians living in the Republic of Artsakh.
The native population of Nagorno Karabakh is running out of essential supplies after being disconnected from Armenia and the rest of the world, while the genocidal attempt at ethnic cleansing remains uncondemned by Australia’s Government.
The protest, organised by Armenian-Australian youth groups across New South Wales, comes amid repeated attempts by the Armenian-Australian community urging Minister Wong to release a statement calling on Azerbaijan to cease the blockade and the developing humanitarian crisis it has caused.
Armenian-Australian community leaders, including Artsakh’s representative in Australia Mr Kaylar Michaelian, have released several videos urging the local Armenian-Australian community to join them outside the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) building at 1PM.
A number of buses have been organised to transport participants to and from the protest, from Ryde and Willoughby. To reserve your seat on a bus, please click here.
Armenian National Committee of Australia's Executive Director Michael Kolokossian said: "The silence from Canberra is deeply concerning, especially to the many members of the Armenian-Australian community who feel like our voices are being ignored."
"It is time for Canberra to end its silence and add its voice to the rest of the democratic world, including allies like the United States, Canada and the European Union, in condemning Azerbaijan’s thinly veiled objective of ethnic cleansing. Australia must take a firm stance on this crisis in order to prevent another genocide of Armenians," added Kolokossian.
The protest has encouraged Armenian-Australians to bring their flags, posters and voices to ensure the Australia’s Government is brought to attention about the current inhumane blockade of Artsakh by Azerbaijan.
