Thousands Gather at Special Community Events Featuring Turkish Parliamentarian of Armenian Descent Garo Paylan

On April 30th and May 1st, thousands of activists and community members from Canada’s Armenian, Assyrian and Kurdish communities gathered in Toronto and Montreal respectively, at special community events featuring Turkish Parliamentarian of Armenian descent, Mr. Garo Paylan.

Garo Paylan is a founding member of the People’s Democratic Party (HDP) and is a deputy representing the 3rd district in Istanbul. Mr Paylan is a member of Turkey’s Armenian community and has long been championing efforts to promote human rights, freedom of speech, minority rights and particularly Kurdish and Armenian issues in Turkey. Prior to joining the parliament, Mr Paylan served in the central committee of the HDP and also served on the management of Armenian schools in Istanbul.  

 At both events, Garo Paylan was welcomed with standing ovations. Mr. Paylan provided an overview of the current political climate in Turkey, the aftermath of the constitutional referendum and the ongoing uncertainty and concern regarding the rights and freedoms of the minorities living in Turkey. He stressed the importance of acknowledging history, specifically in regards to the Armenian Genocide, stating, “unpunished crimes lead to new crimes.”

 Furthermore, Mr. Paylan highlighted the importance of maintaining and upholding the values of democracy, tolerance, respect and human rights in the Republic of Turkey and around the world.

 Mr. Paylan’s presence and exceptional remarks were an inspiration to the entire community and particularly to the upcoming generations who vowed to carry on the torch in the collective struggle of the Armenian people around the world.

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  The ANCC is the largest and the most influential Canadian-Armenian grassroots human rights organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout Canada and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCC actively advances the concerns of the Canadian-Armenian community on a broad range of issues and works to eliminate abuses of human rights throughout Canada and the world.

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