“The prehistory of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide adopted by the UN on December 9, 1948 is related to the most tragic page in the history of the Armenian people. It was the absence of condemnation and elimination of consequences of the Armenian Genocide that made the young philologist Rafael Lemkin, in 1921, ask his professor why the Armenians did not have the masterminds of the Armenian Calamity arrested. To that question the professor replied that there was no law under which they could be arrested,” Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian stated during an international conference “The Crime of Genocide: Prevention, condemnation and elimination of consequences” held in Yerevan.

“It was this answer that forced Lemkin to drop philology and become immersed in international law, dedicating his life to the study of crimes against humanity, which, among others, paved the way for the adoption of the 1948 Convention.  Indeed, the international community has registered some progress in this area by the adoption of the Rome Statute and the establishment of tribunals for Rwanda and Yugoslavia. In this period several genocide research centers have been founded, studies have been carried out in various research establishments and universities, a large amount of literature has been and is being published, and symposiums and conferences are being organized. Nevertheless, the recurrence of genocide or its threat is not a turned page for humanity,” Nalbandian stressed.

“The denials of genocides and impunity pave the way for the repetition of new crimes against humanity. Independent of geopolitical or other interests, the international community should stand together in the condemnation of genocide and in its prevention. It is due to the absence of this unanimity that humanity witnesses new attempts at committing genocide,” Nalbandian concluded.

Scientists from 11 European countries are attending the conference.