April 12, 2019 - 14:31 AMT
MP proposes bringing Armenian Genocide issue to Turkey parliament

Turkish-Armenian lawmaker Garo Paylan has weighed in on the recognition of the Genocide by Italy’s parliament and France’s decision to declare April 24 as a day commemorating the mass killings of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire.

According to the MP, the issue of the recognition of the Armenian Genocide should be raised in the Turkish parliament too.

“We should remove the issue of the Armenian Genocide from the parliaments of Italy, France or the United States and bring it to the parliament of Turkey, a country where the great catastrophe took place,” Paylan said in a tweet.

“The Armenians of Turkey have been waiting for justice for 104 years now.”

On Wednesday, French President Emmanuel Macron signed an order declaring April 24 a day to commemorate the Armenian Genocide.

Also, Wednesday, the Lower House of Italy's parliament approved a motion calling on the Italian government to officially recognize the Armenian Genocide and raise the profile of the issue at the international level.

Armenians commemorate the mass killings on April 24 because on that date in 1915 a group of Armenian intellectuals was rounded up and assassinated in Constantinople by the Ottoman government. On April 24, Armenians worldwide will be commemorating the 104th anniversary of the Genocide which continued until 1923. Some three dozen countries, hundreds of local government bodies and international organizations have so far recognized the killings of 1.5 million Armenians as Genocide. Turkey denies to this day.