This Friday, September 23 at the Jardin d’Arménie 1, there was a strong presence of emotion (and some tears) among representatives of the Armenian community of Nice during the unveiling of the stele in memory of Roupen Sevag.
This ceremony is part of the friendship pact sealed between the City of Nice and the City of Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, twinned since 2007, and the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Independence of the Republic of Armenia.
Christian Estrosi, in his speech, honored the strong relations of friendship, solidarity, and cooperation established between the City of Nice and Armenia.
Relations based on shared values of democracy, humanism, and solidarity, which rely on centuries-old historical roots that unite the two countries.
Karen Karapetyan, Mayor of Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, and his delegation expressed the Armenian people’s gratitude towards France, which recognized in 2001 the genocide of 1,500,000 people in 1915, and satisfaction with the ties between the two cities, Yerevan and Nice.
An exceptional visit as it is one of the first official visits he has made to France since his appointment as the head of the Armenian capital.
He was accompanied by the Ambassador of Armenia in France, Viguen Tchitetchian.
The commemorative stele that was unveiled is erected in memory of the victims of the Armenian Genocide of 1915, perpetrated under the Ottoman Empire.
This stele is dedicated to the Armenian martyr Roupen Sevag, a poet and doctor, who was executed in 1915.
His daughter, Shamiram Sevag, an adopted resident of Nice, now 97 years old and present at the ceremony, survived the genocide and continues an unrelenting fight for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide.
During the ceremony, children from the Barsamian School of Nice performed the national anthems of Armenia and France.
France, which has nearly 500,000 people of Armenian origin, is one of the first countries where the Armenian diaspora sought refuge, particularly since the 1920s.
Today, about 5,000 people make up the Armenian community of Nice and its surroundings, and its contribution to the local economic and cultural influence is indisputable.
