18 Nov A Letter From Sarkis Shahinian, Our Honorary President
Image: Adrian Baer / NZZ
The Switzerland-Armenia Association needs your support!
Dear SAA (GSA) Supporters and Friends,
Armenia is one of the oldest and culturally richest nations of the world. For over 25 years, our Association has promoted Armenia’s cultural and political image in Switzerland. Although we are a relatively small organization, we conduct our activities professionally and effectively. We are proud of our many achievements, and face our future challenges with intensity.
And indeed, today Armenia is facing challenges.
Switzerland has long been at Armenia’s side at some of its most critical moments of its history, including what we are experiencing today. The dominant Armenian cause is a human rights issue, where the rights of a small nation are constantly at a precipice, vulnerable to the winds of geopolitical fervor and the whims of regional leaders.
The evidence is clear that the Armenia-Karabakh situation has been tremendously precarious, as ethnic Armenians were left alone to fight during the recent war of Autumn 2020 against well-funded enemy forces several hundred times stronger, and who employed illegal weapons and foreign mercenaries.
What will the world say about the war crimes, mutilations, and torture administered against Armenian civilians and POW’s by Azeri forces? Will this go unpunished, or will Azerbaijan face justice?
We must also remember Azerbaijan’s systematic destruction of Armenian cultural heritage in Nakhichevan. Heritage that is not just Armenia’s, but the World’s. Delivering the Karabakh region’s ancient architecture and cultural artifacts to control of the Azerbaijani army cannot be done in good conscience. Indeed, this tragic process of rewriting history has already started, as humanity’s heritage is defaced and destroyed before our eyes.
Equally, let us not forget the issue of the Armenian Genocide, with the ongoing battle between its denial and its political recognition around the world. In order to support values that speak to justice and cultural preservation, the GSA created the Switzerland-Armenia Parliamentary Friendship Group within the Swiss Parliament – an important voice to inform members of the Parliament and the media, whose knowledge of the land of Ararat was often only from the Holy Bible. The wounds of World War 1 and the Armenian Genocide are still with us today, as Yerevan’s citizens gaze upon Ararat’s magnificent peaks, knowing their symbol of nationhood sits across the closed Turkish border.
The GSA has built a small, yet strong grassroots organization; a powerful voice in, and for our community. Yet our adversaries are as rich as they are unrelenting. The active challenges to our homeland and heritage continue to grow.
But, so do the opportunities before us.
As a small, non-profit organization, we rely upon friends like you for financial support to capitalize our efforts and advance our cause. Just as our voice reflects your values, our strength depends on your devotion.
Please visit the DONATE page, or JOIN US to discover other ways in which you can support our important mission.
Thank you for your generous support!
Sarkis Shahinian
Honorary President of the Switzerland-Armenia Association
Secretary General of the Parliamentary Friendship Group Switzerland-Armenia