SYDNEY: The Australian Greens have added their voice to calls for Prime Minister Scott Morrison to accurately recognise the Armenian, Assyrian and Greek Genocides, reported the Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC-AU).

The Australian Greens have a long-standing party position calling for Federal Australian recognition of the Armenian Genocide.

The foreign affairs spokesperson of what is the largest cross-bench political party in Australia’s Federal Parliament, Senator Janet Rice wrote to Prime Minister Morrison joining the Armenian-Australian community’s appeal calling on his recognition of the mass killings of 1.5 million Armenians, and over 1 million Assyrians and Greeks, as Genocide.

Senator Rice’s letter, sent during the week marking the 106th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, reads: “It is critical that the Australian Government take the step of formally recognising the Armenian Genocide. It is important for the families and descendants of the 1.5 million Armenians who were killed by the Ottoman Empire and the families and descendants of the one million Greeks and Assyrians who were also killed.”

The letter also calls out Prime Minister Morrison’s backflip on Armenian Genocide recognition, which he called for in a 2011 House of Representatives speech.

ANC-AU Executive Director Haig Kayserian welcomed the support from The Australian Greens, as pressure continues to build ahead of Prime Minister Morrison’s statement on the Armenian Genocide.

“We applaud The Australian Greens for joining our appeal and consistently championing Armenian Genocide recognition in the hallways of parliament,” said Kayserian.

“The Armenian Genocide represents one of the most brutal chapters in Armenian history, which to this day continues to affect tens of thousands of descendants of survivors of the Armenian Genocide in Australia,” he added.

“Hence it is heartening to see a political party such as The Australian Greens taking a stand against the Australian Federal Government's failure to stand on the right side of history.”

In early April, the Armenian National Committee of Australia wrote to Scott Morrison, requesting his unequivocal statement on the 106th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Since then, the New South Wales Ecumenical Council of 16 churches, Christian Charity Barnabas and the New South Wales Armenia-Australia Friendship Group, and Kurdish Lobby Australia and the NSW Young Liberals among others, have called for a change in Australian foreign policy wording to include the word Genocide when referencing 1915.

The Armenian-Australian, Assyrian-Australian and Greek-Australian communities have united under the Joint Justice Initiative banner, announcing a #SpeakUpScoMo March for Justice in Sydney and Melbourne on 24th April 2021.