Participants of memory flash mob in Armenia uphold cancellation of mourning march

This year, the traditional mass march to the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex in Yerevan, held on the Armenian Genocide Memorial Day, was cancelled because of the coronavirus. Residents of Armenia understand the need of restrictive measures and have paid tribute to the victims by means of a virtual rally.

On April 23, instead of the traditional torchlight march in memory of the Armenian Genocide victims, residents of Armenia lit candles and lights in their homes.

Armen Sargsyan, President of Armenia, has noted that the issue of recognizing the Armenian Genocide, which the country raises before the international community and Turkey, has several components: the commemoration duty; the prevention of repetition; condemnation of similar crimes, and the elimination of the consequences of genocide.

Nikol Pashinyan, the Prime Minister, has emphasized that "the Armenian genocide is a crime against not only the Armenian nation, but also against the whole mankind."

During the genocide, a total of 1.5 million Armenians were massacred, hundreds of thousands became refugees and were deprived of the right to live in their historic homeland, Mr Pashinyan has stated, adding that "the pain of Armenian people has not yet abated: more than a century has passed, but the consequences of the genocide have not been eliminated."