Press Relase. Assadakah: Turkey's position about Armenia is critical, it cannot join Europe

The Pope's words have broken the silence on Armenian genocide. Turkey's position is critical, it cannot join Europe. Our book, which collects interviews with the survivors of the genocide, will be given to Pope Francis.

Rome, April 13, 2015 – The Italian Arab Center Assadakah expresses its satisfaction with the words of the Pope Francis who has described the massacre of as many as 1.5 million Armenians, perpetrated by the government of Young Turks, as “the first genocide of the 20th century”. These words, after those of John Paul II, break down the wall of indifference and silence that for too long has characterized this tragedy.
As the Italian Arab Center Assadakah, we submitted to United Nations, to the European Parliament and to the Italian Government, a written request for the recognition of 2015 as the year of the remembrance. Also, we asked to recognize April 24th as a day of remembrance of victims of the Armenian genocide to commemorate the sacrifices of one and a half million Armenians who were slaughtered with a deliberate plan and horrific atrocities. However, our request has gone unheeded.
No wonder to see Turkey that has angrily reacted by recalling its ambassador to the Vatican. The position of Ankara, which nearly one hundred years after the murderous, refuses to recognize the crime by denying that it was genocide, forces Europe to stop Turkey's EU accession, since its policy is incompatible with European core values. That government is also responsible for the continuous violation of human rights and civil liberties, it is guilty of supporting the terrorist gangs that are bloodying Syria and Iraq.
To commemorate that crime and to denounce the Turkish historical revisionism, the Italian Arab Center Assadakah promoted a book titled, “The Armenian Genocide: 100 years of silence. The extraordinary story of the last survivors”, written by three Italian journalists, Alessandro Aramu, Gian Micalessin and Anna Mazzone. A unique testimony from those who have experienced persecution, violence and forced exile, far from the home denied. A report that helps to understand how contemporary Armenia, through the new generations, has to face the challenge of a shared memory as an element of identity and belonging to a people. This book will be given to Pope Francis as expression of gratitude for what he is doing to preserve the memory of this genocide.

Raimondo Schiavone

General Secretary of Assadakah