British Parliament to review draft measure on Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day

March 16, 2010 - 11:08 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Lawmakers in London get set to deliberate over a national day of remembrance for the Armenian Genocide. A measure is on its way to the British Parliament that if adopted would set aside an Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day. British lawmakers are to review a draft of the measure this month.

Nilgun Canver, a council member in the London Borough of Haringey that there was “no chance” the measure would pass, UPI reported.

The Armenian Genocide

The Armenian Genocide (1915-23) was the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I. It was characterized by massacres and deportations, involving forced marches under conditions designed to lead to the death of the deportees, with the total number of deaths reaching 1.5 million.

The majority of Armenian Diaspora communities were formed by the Genocide survivors.

Present-day Turkey denies the fact of the Armenian Genocide, justifying the atrocities as “deportation to secure Armenians”. Only a few Turkish intellectuals, including Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk and scholar Taner Akcam, speak openly about the necessity to recognize this crime against humanity.

The Armenian Genocide was recognized by Uruguay, Russia, France, Lithuania, Italy, 45 U.S. states, Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon, Argentina, Belgium, Austria, Wales, Switzerland, Canada, Poland, Venezuela, Chile, Bolivia, the Vatican, Luxembourg, Brazil, Germany, the Netherlands, Paraguay, Sweden, Venezuela, Slovakia, Syria, Vatican, as well as the European Parliament and the World Council of Churches.