A stamp sheet to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Armenian
genocide was released by the Uruguayan Post Office and Ministry of
Foreign Affairs.
Uruguay was the first and is still one of a handful of countries to recognize the Genocide.
“Uruguay was the first country to recognize the Armenian genocide by
law 50 years ago, a transcendental step in a struggle that continues to
the present day,” said Uruguayan Foreign Minister Rodolfo Nin Novoa, who
also announced an official delegation to Armenia for the centenary on
April 24.(*)
According to Novoa, the relationship between the two countries is at a
high and the stamp “is full of significance and emotion because it
delves into the memory of all those victims of the brutal crime of
genocide” whose struggle for recognition is supported by Uruguay.
Minister of Tourism and Sport, Lilian Kechichian, of
Armenian origin, said “the suffering of a hundred years has the added pain
of still not being recognized by the whole world, but Uruguay has set an
extraordinary example.”
“It is a huge honor that Uruguay received our grandparents, our
parents, offered them work, allowed each one of us to study and live in a
country of peace,” she added.
The Primate of the Armenian Church in Uruguay, Archbishop Hakob Kelenjian,
also applauded the country’s role in the struggle for international
recognition of the Armenian genocide.
“We are very proud to live in this country that defends just causes
because the greatness of a country is not measured by its military
might, economic power, its extensive borders, but by how it defends
human rights,” noted Kelenjian.-------------------
(*) Incidentally, for those who think that recognition comes exclusively with the word "genocide," it is noteworthy that the law 22.314 of April 22, 1965 did not mention the word in its text ("Armeniaca").
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