French President Emmanuel Macron fulfills his pledge to add April 24 in the French calendar as the day of commemoration of the Armenian Genocide victims. Macron's decision was announced on Tuesday during extended remarks made at the annual dinner organized by the Coordinating Council of the Armenian Organizations of France (CCAF).
President Macron, who appeared at the traditional event wearing a forget-me-not, the symbol of the Centennial of Armenian Genocide, noted in his remarks that April 24 of 1915 – as the first Genocide of the 20th century – should never be forgotten.
In his speech, the French president recalled Misak Manushyan, "Migrant song" by Charles Anzavour, the film "Mother" directed by Henri Verneuil.
"All of them were sons and daughters of France. We have realized what inspiration France gave to all those refugees, likewise what strength they gave to France," Macron said.
Macron next stated his decision to fulfill his pledge made during the presidential campaign last year to include April 24 in the French calendar as the day of commemoration of the Armenian Genocide. "The fight for justice and recognition is our fight. We recall it through commemoration and add the Armenian Genocide date to the French calendar," the president said.
Macron also reflected on the necessity to return to the penalization of the denial of the genocide and work in that direction in the country's National Assembly.
To note, the annual dinner was attended by Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, Turkish-Armenia lawmaker Garo Paylan, French politician of the Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) Patrick Devedjian as well as more than 500 representatives of the Armenian community of France.