The Armenian Heritage Conference, held in Bern, Switzerland on May 27-28, addressed the consequences of the ongoing conflict in Artsakh, with focus on the protection of its Armenian Christian and cultural heritage, the human rights of its people, and the future security of the Armenian nation.
Organized by the World Council of Churches (WCC) in collaboration with the Protestant Church in Switzerland, the conference brought together experts on international law and human rights, historians, politicians, and representatives from international organizations, as well as leaders of the Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and Yezidi traditions.
Travelling from the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin expressly for the occasion, His Holiness Karekin II, the Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, addressed the gathering. “The destruction of cultural heritage must rightly be seen not only as a crime against a single nation, but as a crime against all of humanity,” Catholicos Karekin II said.
The Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, His Holiness Aram I, sent a video greeting that urged attendees to challenge the notion that “might is right.”
WCC General Secretary Rev. Dr. Jerry Pillay underscored that the conference “is not a symbolic act, but a response to the calling of the church. We are here because we believe that peace cannot exist without justice. We are not here by coincidence. We are not here to be bystanders.”
Solidarity, Conscience, & Commitment
Dr. Pillay was also a panelist at the concluding press conference, which featured reflections from Rev. Rita Famos, president of the Protestant Church in Switzerland; Archbishop Vicken Aykazian, Vice Moderator of the WCC and the Diocesan Legate and Ecumenical Director of the Eastern Diocese, who was instrumental in organizing the conference; and Dr. Luis Moreno Ocampo, the international advocate who has been outspoken in affirming that the war on Artsakh and the expulsion of its Armenian inhabitants constitute a genocide.
The distinguished roster of conference speakers from the fields of advocacy, human rights, scholarship, and various religious traditions included Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell, Dr. Ani Ghazaryan, Dr. Michael Rubin, Garo Paylan, Dr. Azza Karam, Dr. Ali Akbar Ziaei, Paula Yacoubian, Adama Dieng, Rev. Mae Elise Cannon, Van Krikorian, Rabbi Alexander Goldberg, and Dr. Taner Akçam, among others.
The Armenian Heritage Conference closed with a strong statement urging international bodies to protect Artsakh’s cultural and religious heritage, and to ensure accountability for the destruction that has taken place. “Let this statement serve as a testimony to our shared responsibility and as a living document of solidarity, conscience, and commitment,” the statement concludes. “The heritage of Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh belongs not only to Armenians, but to the whole of humanity, and it is our collective responsibility to protect it.”
Click the following links to:
- READ more on the WCC website.
- VIEW photos by photographer Ivars Kupcis and others.
- READ the final conference statement.
- WATCH videos of the concluding press conference and speakers.