ArmInfo. The third Global Forum "Against the Crime of Genocide" kicked off in Yerevan. The opening ceremony of the forum was held at the Matenadaran Museum-Institute of Ancient Manuscripts, part of collection of which survived thanks to those who escaped from the Genocide.
Acting Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan noted at the opening of the forum, that on December 9, 1948, thanks to the efforts of Rafael Lemkin, who devoted his life to combating this crime, the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide was adopted. On December 10, 1948, as Mnatsakanyan recalled, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted. "70 years ago, a large group of experts gathered to adopt an important document, which is still the most important international mechanism," the diplomat said. According to him, it took two world wars to adopt documents on human rights.
Mnatsakanyan recalled that based on the initiative of Armenia, in 2015 the UN General Assembly declared December 9th, the day the Genocide Convention was adopted, as the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime.
However, today the threat of repetition of genocides has not been eliminated. In a rapidly changing world, such challenges as the spread of intolerance, xenophobia and hatred continue to develop. According to Mnatsakanyan, it is precisely to address these issues that the main discussions should be directed to replenish the arsenal of fighting this type of crime.
The Forum "Against the Crime of Genocide", which will be held in Yerevan December 9-11, is dedicated to the prevention of the crime of genocide through education, culture and museums, organized by the Armenian Foreign Ministry with the assistance of the UN Office for the Prevention of Genocides, and in collaboration with the International Association of Genocide Researchers. Armenian Acting Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, Adama Dieng, United Nations Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, special Rapporteur of the UN Secretary General Fernan de Warren, Rapporteur of the Commission on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs of the OSCE Kyriakos Kyriakou-Hadjiyiani, as well as the President of the International Association of Genocide Researchers Henri Therion and the Global Action for the Prevention of Mass Crime (GAAMAC). 11 December the solemn opening ceremony of Rafael Lemkin Street will be held (current - the 1st dead end of Marshal Baghramian Avenue).