Public Appeal for the Commemoration of the Armenian Genocide in Turkey

The Armenian organisation AGBU Europe, the European Grasroots Anti-racist Movement (EGAM) and the Turkish movement DurDe! (“Say Stop”) call upon all concerned to sign onto a public appeal issued on the occasion of the 99th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide that will take place on April 24, 2014. The appeal calls upon all Europeans to join in these commemorations in a spirit of “recognition, solidarity, justice, and democracy”.

The text has already received the support of such celebrities as public intellectual Bernard Henry-Levy, writer Tahar Ben Jelloun and international celebrity Charles Aznavour as well as numerous civil society leaders from around Europe. The appeal is due to be published in newspapers in many countries in early April.

The campaign now also has a dedicated website at www.remember24april1915.eu, where supporters are invited to sign onto the appeal, as well as a dedicated facebook page.

April 24 this year will be the second time a joint EGAM-AGBU Europe delegation takes part in the commemorations in Turkey. In addition to Istanbul, the three organizations are also involved in organizing genocide commemorations in Van and Diyarbakir, in the east of the country.

Commenting on the commemorations to come, DurDe leader Levent Sensever said that “this question is very important for people in Turkey. How we resolve it will have an enourmous influence on what our country will be like in the future. DurDe aspires to a democratic society that does not tolerate impunity and that values its remaining diversity instead of promoting nationalism and prejudice. We also owe it to the Armenians to recognize the crime, to apologize and to see what should be done about it now.”

According to Benjaming Abtan, President of EGAM, further noted that “Turkish society is at a historic turning point. A struggle is being waged between denialism on the one hand, and democracy on the other. This year, Turkish civil society will commemorate the genocide. Cities, such as Diyarbakir and Van, will commemorate it too. The State could soon be the last major institution to deny the truth of the genocide.”

The campaign on the web: http://www.remember24april1915.eu/
The campaign on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Remember24April2015
AGBU Europe: www.agbueurope.eu
DurDe!: www.durde.org
EGAM: http://egam-eu.blogspot.be/