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On April 23, a Final Statement was adopted by the Second Global Forum Against the Crime of Genocide held in Yerevan at the initiative of the RA National Assembly and the RA Government, which is presented below:

Second Global Forum Against the Crime of Genocide

23 April 2016, Yerevan

Final Statement and Recommendations

The Global Forum

Hails the initiative of the National Assembly and the Government of the Republic of Armenia to host the Second Global Forum in Yerevan on April 23, 2016;

Welcomes the unanimous adoption in 2015 by the United Nations General Assembly of the Resolution proclaiming December 9 International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime which stresses, inter alia, the necessity to raise awareness regarding the Convention for the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide;

Pays special tribute and expresses gratitude to all those who stood up in the name of humanity, acting with courage and sacrifice and saved multiple innocent lives in the times of humanitarian crises and genocide;

Expresses deep concern with regard to the recent alarming outspread of atrocities and genocidal killings by ISIS and other terrorist groups in the Middle East and other parts of the world, which directly threaten ethnic and religious minorities and produce widespread humanitarian crises, including the highest number of refugees and displaced persons since World War II;

Recognizes that humanitarian crises of this magnitude require synergy of efforts and cannot be addressed by any state singlehandedly, and firmly believes that humanitarian response in addressing challenges associated with the unprecedented numbers of refugees and displaced parsons should by no means become subject of political manipulations;

Echoes the call of the Yerevan Declaration adopted by the Global Forum Against the Crime of Genocide in April 2015 to all states to bring their utmost contribution to the strengthening of genocide prevention mechanisms;

Calls on all states, parliaments, international organizations, civil society and other stakeholders to join efforts in a spirit of renewed commitment to combat the evil of genocide and other crimes against humanity;

Emphasizes the importance and necessity of teaching history of the humankind as well as causes and consequences of genocide with a view of achieving comprehensive and objective recognition of the crimes of the past;

Recommends that next Global Forum to focus on the role of education, tools, methods and skills as a part of our shared responsibility to eliminate hatred, intolerance and xenophobia, and believes that education and knowledge sharing are critical for the eradication of the scourge of genocide;

Decides to convene next meeting in April 2018 in the Republic of Armenia.