WCC: Armenian Heritage Conference will address consequences of conflict in Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh
An Armenian Heritage Conference, to be held in Bern, Switzerland, from 27-28 May, will address the consequences of the conflict in Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh with regard to the protection of Armenian religious 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 is expected to draw an audience of around 150 people for a constructive dialogue on issues related to the protection of Armenian people and heritage in Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh and the wider region, in light of similar experiences elsewhere.
Since the 2020 war, thousands of civilians and military personnel have been killed or wounded, and in September 2023, about 120,000 ethnic Armenians were forced to leave their ancestral homeland. The international community has an important role to play in ensuring the preservation of Armenian religious and cultural heritage, to care for those displaced, to protect their right to return to their land, and to guard against further conflict in the region.
Experts on international law and human rights, historians, politicians, representatives from international and nongovernmental organizations, and church leaders will gather in Bern to discuss the protection of the rich Armenian religious and cultural heritage in Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh and raise the issue of the Armenians’ rights and future security.
WCC general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay, in a short “peace video,” focuses on Artsakh/Nagorno-Karabakh, where thousands of ethnic Armenians have been forcibly displaced.
“Their suffering reminds us of the urgent need for a just and lasting peace,” he says. “Peace is not the absence of conflict. It is the presence of justice, compassion, and the courage to walk together in hope.”
The WCC and other groups shared brief peace messages in the lead-up to the conference. Rev. Rita Famos, president of the Protestant Church in Switzerland, said: “I stand in a long tradition of ecclesial solidarity with Armenia – and together with my church, I am committed to ensuring that the injustice suffered by the people of Artsakh is not forgotten, and that peace, human rights, and religious freedom in the region have a real chance.”