04 11 2007 - The first Armenian Memorial of UK

The first Armenian Memorial of UK

On Saturday, 3rd November 2007 a Memorial Khatchkar was consecrated in
Cardiff, Wales.

The unveiling was carried out by the Presiding Officer of the National Assembly of Wales, Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas and by Dr Vahe Gabrielyan, the Armenian Ambassador to the United Kingdom.

Lord Elis-Thomas, will take part in the ceremony outside the Temple of Peace in Cardiff, calling the deaths "one of the biggest genocides the world has ever seen.

Lord Elis-Thomas said: "The fact that the funds for this fine memorial have been raised entirely by the Armenians who live in Wales and that it will occupy a special place here in the Temple of Peace, reflects the vibrant Welsh interest in the history of Armenia."

The monument, made of pink stone and Welsh slate, was designed and crafted by stonemason Ieuan Rees of Betws, near Ammanford.

It carries an inscription in English, Welsh and Armenian, which reads, 'In memory of the victims of the Armenian genocide'.

But the memorial has provoked angry protests from the Turkish community.

Hal Savas, of the Committee for the Protection of Turkish Rights, said: "The allegation of genocide is entirely unproven."

A spokesman for the Armenian community said in response: "We hope they will come to terms with history."

Jean Eckian / Paris

Con il contributo della comunità armena di Galles si è inaugurata a Cardiff il primo monumento in assoluto eretto sul territorio della Gran Bretagna in memoria delle vittime "di uno dei più grandi genocidi della storia"(le parole del Lord Elis-Thomas): un bellissimo Khatchkar in tufo rosa ..."...questo monumento eretto con il solo contributo della comunità armena di Galles nel Tempio della Pace (piazza, in una sede governativa centrale) dimostra l'estremo interesse del Galles alla storia degli armeni..." ha dichiarato Lord Elis-Thomas, Presidente dell'Assemblea Nazionale del Galles.... Ricevuto dall?"Associazione della Comunità Armena di Roma e del Lazio" -

Seta Martayan