Thursday, April 25 2019 11:16

ArmInfo.Colorado's State Senate unanimously voted yesterday to designate April 24 as "Colorado Day of the Remembrance of the Armenian Genocide" through a  strongly-worded resolution that also recognized the Republic of  Artsakh and the recent cultural genocide in Nakhichevan.

"We are grateful for Colorado's ongoing remembrance of the Armenian  Genocide and we are so proud of this year's courageous resolution  that recognizes the ongoing genocidal repercussions faced by the  Armenian homeland," remarked the Armenian National Committee of  America Western Region (ANCA WR) chair Nora Hovsepian, Esq. "The  resolution is particularly commendable for referencing and  effectively recognizing the Republic of Artsakh," continued  Hovsepian. "This success, which builds upon the Sardarapat Highway  and the Capitol Khachkar Memorial, is another testament to the  effectiveness of the determined and persistent activism pursued by  Colorado's vibrant Armenian American grassroots."

Championed by Democratic Senator Dominick Moreno and Republican  Senator Jack Tate, Senate Resolution 19-012 recounts the historical  background of the Armenian Genocide, recalls Colorado's WWI-era  efforts in support of the Armenian Nation, and references the ongoing  consequences of the Armenian Genocide that impact the Armenian  homeland on a daily basis. In particular, the resolution states that  "The ongoing consequences of the Armenian Genocide and its impunity  include the Turkish-Azerbaijani blockade of the already-landlocked  sister states of the Armenian homeland, the Republic of Armenia and  the Republic of Artsakh." This recognition increases the number of  American states that have recognized Artsakh to nine.

The resolution also cites the recently-exposed cultural genocide in  Nakhichevan as an outcome of the impunity for the Armenian Genocide:  "Turkey's unpunished denial of the Armenian Genocide and ongoing  desecration of Armenian sacred sites without accountability has  inspired and enabled the recent execution of an unparalleled cultural  genocide of the entire indigenous Christian Armenian heritage in the  Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhichevan, where between the years of 1997  and 2006 the Azerbaijan Government eradicated every trace of the  region's ancient Armenian past of an estimated 90 churches and 6,000  intricately-carved cross-stones, including the celebrated Djulfa  khachkars, one of which was replicated in 2015 for the Colorado State  Capitol Armenian Genocide Memorial Garden."