The Human Rights Association of Turkey (HRA) and the Truth Justice and Memory Center—both Turkey-based organizations— on October 16 reacted to the judgment issued by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) on the case of Perincek v. Switzerland, the Armenian Weekly reports.

The statement criticized the ECHR for failing to take into account the realities in place in Turkey that threaten the livelihood and safety of the Armenian community. Both organizations, along with a third Toronto-based institute, presented a Third-Party Intervention file to the court ahead of the hearing leading up to the contentious October 15 ruling. They further argued that the ECHR ruling “does not invalidate” the arguments proffered in the file.

“The ECHR Grand Chamber’s recent verdict will by no means invalidate the veracity of our warnings that genocide denial cannot be considered solely within Swiss borders and that it will exacerbate threats against the Armenian society in Turkey, including their right to life,” the statement reads.

The organizations also noted that the ECHR judgment was based on a “technical point of view,” as a main consideration was geographical—the consequences of Perincek’s statements were assessed strictly within the Swiss context, ignoring the effect they might have on the Armenian community in Turkey.

“Racism against Armenians in Turkey was included neither in the ECHR’s deliberations, nor in the rationale for the ruling,” the statement reads.

The organizations also criticized the Turkish media for misrepresenting the verdict. “In certain segments of the Turkish media, both the initial ECHR ruling in favor of Perincek’s freedom of expression and the Grand Chamber’s ruling are presented as evidence for the ECHR’s confirmation of the view that there was no Armenian Genocide; in other words, for their claim that the ECHR also denies genocide,” the statement reads, adding that “The above constitutes a blatant and intentional distortion, and in fact a lie.”

Finally, the Human Rights Association and the Memory Center vowed to continue their struggle in Turkey to confront the past, struggle against genocide denial, and work towards the restitution of justice.