France Declares April 24 as Commemoration Day for Armenian Genocide

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President of France Emmanuel Macron has declared April 24 as the "day for the commemoration of the Armenian genocide".

Macron announced at the annual dinner of the Coordination Council of Armenian Organizations of France (CCAF) that he will declare a national day in France for the commemoration of the genocide.

Macron informed Erdoğan

Macron has said that he informed President and Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

France's recognition of the Armenian Genocide

France recognized the 1915 Armenian exodus as a genocide in 2001.

In December 2011, the parliament of France passed a bill that stipulates one year prison sentence and 45 thousand euros fine for denial of the Armenian genocide.

The Constitutional Court of France annulled the law in February 2012.

Senate of France passed the same law in October 2016. Yet the Constitutional Court annulled the law for the second time in January 2017.

The Armenian Genocide has been in history and geography curriculums in France since 2012.

Declaring April 24 as a day for the commemoration of the Armenian genocide was one of Macron's election promises in 2017. (HK/VK)