The conference was organized by the Armenian National Committee of South America (CNA) on Saturday 30th. Pedro Mouratian Director of National Institute Against Discrimination, Xenophobia and Racism (INADI), opened the conference by making a parallel between the struggle for recognition of the Armenian Genocide and the trials of those responsible for Argentina's military dictatorship: “The process of our country is about memory, truth and justice and the prosecution of those responsible for the last military dictatorship, somehow makes us believe that we may be able to get the recognition of those responsible for the genocide committed against the Armenian people”.
“We have been seeking justice for nearly a century, it's very difficult for us to believe that justice can arrive. But it always does, sometimes late, but comes”, Mouratian added.
Dr. Khatchik Der Ghougassian, president of the CNA of South America, said that Garzón “makes us believe that justice will come to those who believe in the values and a better future for humanity”, and that his work serve “to show the world the uniqueness of a genocide that was forgotten for a hundred years and even today shakes a regional power, to the point that it carries on with his denier politics”. Finally, he invited Dr. Garzón to visit Armenia in 2015, the year in which the centennial of the Armenian Genocide will be commemorated .
When Garzón open the conference, he confirmed that he “will be in Armenia in 2015”, a phrase that drew applause from the audience. Then he remembered that “until today, recognizing the existence of the Armenian Genocide in Turkey is criminal”, according to the criminal code of the country.
Then, the Spanish lawyer told “one of the most important moments of his life”: On September 15, 2010, he traveled to Istanbul to receive the Hrant Dink Award. “It was very important for me to defend the existence of the Armenian Genocide and it’s impunity precisely in Turkey. The Spanish diplomatic delegation suggested that I should refrain from criticizing too hard as it could endanger my safety”.
Regarding his experience in investigating crimes of dictatorships of Argentina and Chile, Garzón said: “What we perceived on the victims when they gave their testimony was that the mere fact of being in front of a judge that was going to make a judgment of criminal legal value, was already a reparation. 'For the first time a judge is listening to us’, they said”.
Speaking on reparations and compensation for these crimes, Garzón said that there are still some countries that do not recognize the Armenian Genocide. “For example, Israel. The Jewish people suffered the greatest genocide in history. And yet, they say that they do not recognize the Armenian Genocide because of their good relationship with Turkey. They do not hide the reason. This pragmatism is one of the enemies of the victims”. In France, “the National Assembly criminalized the denial of the Armenian Genocide. Finally a country established the same rule regarding the denial of the Holocaust. That was a major success, but the State Council declared it unconstitutional. That was not the case of Switzerland, where it is considered discrimination to denial the existence of the Armenian Genocide”.
