Friday, September 25 2020 10:59

ArmInfo. Fifteen years ago, we, all UN member states, reaffirmed the responsibility to  protect as a firm political commitment to protect peoples from  massive atrocities, including the crime of genocide. Armenian Foreign  Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan stated this during his speech at the  12th ministerial meeting "Responsibility to Protect".

"The responsibility to protect is both a political and a moral  obligation. It is a powerful prevention tool in addition to its legal  obligations under the Convention on the Prevention of the Crime of  Genocide. As a member of the UN Human Rights Council, Armenia has  included in its priories support for global efforts to prevent  genocide and contributing to the UN Office's efforts to prevent  genocide and the responsibility to protect Sustainable and effective  operations of the office remain a top priority today In 2015, Armenia  took the lead in global efforts to proclaim December 9 as  International Day of Remembrance, Dignity and Prevention of the Crime  of Genocide Victims. an additional platform for development and  contribution to our collective prevention efforts ", stated  Mnatsakanyan.

At the same time, he added that Armenia has consistently emphasized  the need to strengthen capacities both at the national, regional and  international levels, in order to identify and eliminate early  warning signals that can lead to massive atrocities. According to the  minister, official Yerevan also emphasized the need to prevent  genocide and other atrocities in the early stages.

"All genocides could have been prevented, be it the Armenian  genocide, the Jewish Holocaust, the Rwandan genocide or other  atrocities. The spread of hatred, intolerance, extremism, propaganda  of war, racial, national, ethnic, religious and other discrimination  of minorities, as well as targeted attacks on civil the population  continues to shape the current reality in different parts of the  world. The international community, the UN and its member states are  not yet ready to decisively and timely respond to these signals, "the  Armenian Foreign Minister stated.

However, he expressed serious concern about the fact that the  international community is ignoring threats, including denial and  justification of genocides that took place in the past, intertwined  with aggressive, offensive language from some politicians, reminding  generations of victims of the "lessons" of the past.  "This is very  disturbing. The silence of such barbaric violations of the norms of  the civilized world by potential criminals is interpreted as  permissiveness to murder. Under no circumstances can sovereignty be  used as a pretext for gross violations of human rights against those  who peacefully exercise their human rights, including the right to  self-determination. No nation has the right to commit murder under  the pretext of sovereignty. In this respect, the responsibility to  protect is very important, as it reminds us that sovereignty is not a  privilege of impunity, but responsibility, "the head of the Armenian  Foreign Ministry said ... At the same time, he expressed his  conviction that international cooperation to strengthen national  defense capabilities is still more important than ever.

Mnatsakanyan recalled that respect for human rights is an integral  part of a democratic society, pointing out the importance of  fulfilling the obligations assumed in this area, working in close  cooperation with the UN human rights mechanisms.

He also touched upon the Global Forum against the Crime of Genocide,  noting that the 4th form will be devoted to the theme: "Women and  girls: challenging the victim's stereotype", and will touch on the  main causes and consequences of genocidal violence against women and  girls. The conference will address the need to prevent sexual and  gender-based violence and prosecute offenders. Prevention of mass  crimes is the common responsibility of all of us, and we will  continue our efforts to make an active contribution to the  advancement of the global agenda on prevention, "the Armenian Foreign  Minister summed up.