One of the components of the Armenian Genocide is cultural genocide. It did not begin and did not end in 1915-1923 but continues to this day. A hundred years ago, it was manifested toward both the Armenians of Western Armenia and other Armenian-populated regions of the Ottoman Empire, as well as toward other Christian peoples of the empire.
The fact that the thousand-year-old Apostolic Church in Kars, as well as dozens of other Christian churches are still being reformed into mosques is evidence that cultural genocide continues.
One of its manifestations is the mania of theft that has been continuing for decades, with ordinary citizens joining the cause of eradicating traces of Christianity with the permission of the state, imparting to this process a massive and, unfortunately, irreversible character.
Traces of Christianity haunt the ruling circles of the Turkish state not only in the far east of the country but also in its very heart – Istanbul with its multimillion population located at the crossroads of Europe and Asia and which pursues the values of world civilization.
The latest evidence is the decision of President Erdogan of the Republic of Turkey to convert the 1500-year-old Hagia Sophia into a mosque. Prior to this decision, Hagia Sophia had the status of a museum and was also considered one of the largest Christian Orthodox churches.
The Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute Foundation considers this decision as a manifestation of cultural genocide carried out at the state level. Any act of genocide is subject to condemnation, and those responsible should be punished since the crime of genocide is not covered by a statute of limitations.
genocide-museum.am
