YEREVAN. – The main event that took place in Turkey on April 24 was the event that was held at Istanbul’s Taksim Square, where several thousands of people commemorated our victims.   

Armenia’s opposition Heritage Party Chairman, ex-presidential candidate, former FM Raffi Hovannisian—who was in Istanbul to participate in the Armenian Genocide’s 99th anniversary events that were held in the city—told the aforesaid at a press conference on Wednesday.  

He informed that while in Istanbul he met with the city’s Armenian youth and also gave numerous interviews. 

“The ‘nail’ of the events certainly was the statement by Turkish PM [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan who, even though evaded the term ‘genocide,’ expressed sympathy for the victims of the Armenians. This was positively assessed by Istanbul’s [Armenian] youth, who hope that this opens a new window for them. 

“I believe this is a repackaged version of Turkey’s denialism, which [i.e., the statement] sounds good to western ears. This was a step to lessen the damages so as to show that there is a change in Turkey. If this change is genuine, we will see other steps until the centennial [of the Genocide],” Hovannisian noted.     

Photo by Arsen Sargsyan/NEWS.am