States News Service
April 30, 2009 Thursday

STATEMENT ON ANNIVERSARY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

OTTAWA, Canada

The following information was released by the New Democratic Party of
Canada:

Today New Democrats recognise the Armenian genocide. Ninety-four years
of history have not erased the horror of genocide, nor have they eased
the hearts of the Armenian people.

Between 1915 and 1923, over 1.5 million Armenians were murdered,
deported en masse, raped, abducted, arbitrarily arrested and forced to
convert religion. It was the first dark chapter and the first genocide
of far too many in the 20th Century.

The Armenian genocide showed the ugly depths to which human nature can
descend. And yet for far too long the world refused to truly see it or
to give it the name of genocide.

New Democrats have worked with the Armenian-Canadian community to have
the Government of Canada recognise the Armenian genocide. Today we
renew our commitment to pressing other countries and organisations,
including the United Nations, to recognise the Armenian genocide.

On this day, we re-commit ourselves and our nation to ensuring that
the tragedy of the Armenians is never that of any other people ever
again.