“Beiruti Associations and Organizations rejects Education Minister Elias Bou Saab’s decision to shut down public and private schools on the occasion of the so-called Armenian genocide, given that the anniversary is a subject of historical dispute and the lack of national Lebanese consensus regarding the circumstances [of the events of 1915],” a statement said.
Cabinet Tuesday approved Bou Saab’s decision to close down schools on April 24 to mark the 100th anniversary of the Armenian genocide.
The statement urged Bou Saab to restrict his decision to private schools that wish to commemorate the event and exclude “Muslim and public schools which have a variety of students.”
Bou Saab, the statement added, “has no right to impose a decision that concerns one sect on the rest of the sects.”
“Furthermore, this decision would harm the distinctive relations between Lebanon and Turkey and could topple Turkish efforts to help secure the release of Lebanese servicemen.”
