On the 29^th of April, the Armenian Community in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan does not only recall but live anew the sufferings of our ancestors, the victims of the first genocide of the Twentieth Century, the genocide of our Armenian Nation. The Nation vehemently rejected abandoning the faith in the truth and defended it with the sacrifice of more than one and half a million of its members, in addition to millions of Armenians who were persecuted, deported and their lands and properties were confiscated.

On this day we, the citizens of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan of Armenian origin, the children, and the grandchildren of the survivors of the Armenian Genocide, confirm anew that we kept and will keep the memory of the sacrifices of our martyrs, the martyrs of truth, alive.

On this day, we don’t only shed tears of sorrow, but we equally shed the tears of gratitude and of hope.

The tears of gratitude first to the Lord for allowing our ancestors, who survived the genocide, to seek refuge in a sacred land. The land embraced the steps of Jesus Christ the Lord in several sites. The land that witnessed the baptism of Jesus Christ the Lord for whom our forefathers sacrificed with their lives, the land of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

For over one century, our grandparents, who survived the genocide and persecution and sought refuge in Jordan, were not received with refugee relief programs, programs of support, and protection by regional and international organizations securing their survival and living with dignity as it is the case today.

The arrival of our great grandparents in Jordan coincided with the Great Arab Revolution when great Jordanians rebelled against the Ottoman Turks who perpetrated the Armenian Genocide. The Jordanian rebels and their children received the survivors of the Armenian genocide with programs of compassion, programs of living together, accepting the other, and providing safety and security.

Our forefathers headed towards Jordan after our houses, our churches, our schools in the lands of our ancestors, the lands of historical Armenia, were destroyed or usurped and found refuge in Jordan. Jordan were the kind, caring and generous people welcomed us welcomed our participation in building Jordan hand in hand with building our own churches, our schools, our clubs, and our societies spearheaded by the Relief Society of the Armenian Women in Jordan. The Society together with all the Armenian institutions in Jordan did and continue to be loyal to the memory of the Armenian genocide and to its victims through humanitarian, cultural, and educational endeavors which contribute to the survival of the Armenian heritage and the Armenian identity.

On this day our martyrs in the Divine Kingdom of the Lord is grateful for the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, people, and leadership, for providing the opportunity for their children and grandchildren not only to build their own institutions but equally to contribute to building Jordan.

This said we stress and confirm that the reception of Jordan, the people, and the leadership, of our great grandparents who found refuge in Jordan, was inspired by their understanding and sympathizing with the Armenian cause and with the sufferings of the victims of the Armenian genocide through their policies and deeds. A the reception that reflects an implicit recognition of the genocide of our ancestors.

On this day, we still hear the wailing of and feel the sufferings of our martyrs, their wailing, and pains for still having their sufferings denied and their sacrifices undermined by several governments and peoples.

Therefore, today we anew shed the tears of sorrow and we pray for the spirits of our martyrs to finally rest in peace.

This day is remembered with great the passion we look forward to the Jordanian Leadership, the advocate of truth and justice, to initiate translating the implicit recognition of its people of the Armenian Genocide into an official, direct, and frank recognition of the Armenian Genocide.

Yes, on this day we pray and shed tears, tears of hope for Jordan, whose people and the forefathers of the current Hashemite leadership revolted against the Ottoman Turks who carried out the genocide of the Armenian people, Jordan whose people themselves suffered from the crimes by the same oppressor, to officially recognize the genocide and have its martyrs finally enjoy eternal peace and comfort.

Today, our pains and sorrows and the memory of our victims provides us with determination and resolve for us to remain loyal to our Armenian nation and to our Motherland Armenia, and to its occupied territories. At the same time, it is a source of pride for us to remain also ever loyal to our dear homeland Jordan whose people and leadership together secured the safety of our ancestors seeking refuge in Jordan.

After more than one century, we still shed tears of sorrow. But today we are strong, strong with our faith and with our sense of belonging to our Motherland Armenia and to our precious homeland Jordan, people, and leadership.

We, the Armenian Community in Jordan, the owners of two identities, Armenian and Jordanian, remember our martyrs and we shed the tears of sorrow for their sufferings, tears of gratitude for Jordan, people, and leadership, for their compassionate understanding and reception of us and of our cause. And, we shed tears of hope, hope for a bright future. The future will reward the sacrifices of the victims of the Armenian genocide through official recognition of the genocide by the Jordanian leadership, and with the Armenian community in Jordan preserving their loyalty to Motherland Armenia and to homeland Jordan, the haven, while praying for continuous prosperity and development for the two countries, the Republic of Armenia, and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, and for the bilateral relations between the two countries.