Saturday, 4 July 2015
Armenian, French Prime Ministers Inaugurate Armenian School in Alfortville
On July 4, Hovik Abrahamyan, Prime Ministers of Armenia, and Manuel Valls, Prime Minister of France attended the opening ceremony of an Armenian college in Alfortville. The event was also attended by French National Assembly Speaker Claude Bartolone, Armenia Education and Science Minister Armen Ashotyan, Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan, Minister of Agriculture Sergo Karapetyan, Deputy Foreign Minister Karen Nazaryan, members of French Parliament, the ambassadors of the two countries, the Mayor of Alfortville, Armenian community representatives and clergy.
Addressing the guests Hovik Abrahamyan said, “I am are proud to be here today with Manuel Valls, the Prime Minister of the friendly France to attend this beautiful and important event. In the wake of the Armenian Genocide Centenary commemoration, the opening of the new college in Alfortville is highly emblematic: firstly, it highlights once again the primary role of education and schooling in Armenian people’s lifestyle and culture. And secondly, the establishment of the institution is a symbol of rebirth for our nation.
Yes, the opening of this new educational institution in France, which offered refuge and peaceful days to hundreds of thousands of Armenian Genocide survivors and became a second homeland for the following generations, is another indication that the planned extermination of our people by the Ottoman Empire proved a failure, since Armenians are living and creating no matter where they are domiciled.
Our compatriots managed to integrate into the French society to become law-abiding citizens of this country, endeavoring for the welfare of their second homeland. In the meantime, you are still holding to your roots, your history and culture.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
For 1600 years now, Armenians have their own alphabet. 500 years ago the first book was printed in Armenian. As early as in the 5th century, great historian Movses Khorenatsi stated, “Education is everything.” Education accompanied our nation like bread, water, and light.
Dear teachers and educators,
I give you my word of appreciation. Educating generations is hard work and great responsibility. Your mission is invaluable in this respect. With hard work done day by day, you have been successful in providing Armenian learning to the younger generation and serving to the noble cause of preserving our language, history and culture.
Schooling, in general, is a major factor on the way to self-development and education; ot os crucial to any Armenian living outside the motherland on terms of patriotic education, identity preservation. I extend my vote of thanks to those parents who will bring their children to this school with trust and confidence in the teaching staff.
I express my deep gratitude to philanthropist Gevorg Arabian who financed the construction of the school, His Grace Norvan Archbishop Zakarian who monitored and brought to successful completion the program, as well as all those who contributed to this very important initiative.
Dear guests,
I am hereby addressing my word of gratitude to the government and people of the French Republic for their warm attitude toward the Armenian community in France. France was the first nation to officially recognize and condemn the Armenian Genocide and continues to fight for the criminalization of genocide denial. At this solemn moment, I extend my gratitude to you, Mr. Prime Minister, for attendance and warm attitude toward the Armenian community. Mr. Mayor, I am deeply touched by your thoughtfulness and care for Alfortville-based Armenians. Finally, I offer my sincere gratitude to Mr. Rouquet who has always been standing by Armenia and the Armenian people.
Dear friends,
I once again congratulate us all on the opening of this beautiful institution. I wish you every success, strong will and boundless energy for the sake of the Armenian community and the development of Armenian-French relations.
Long live the Armenian-French friendship
Long live Armenia
Long live France!”
For significant contribution to education, school-building and identity preservation efforts, Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan awarded Prime Minister’s commemorative medal to philanthropist Gevorg Arabian.
Remarks were also delivered by French Prime Minister Manuel Valls who stated in part, “I am pleased to be in Alforville today and I am happy to attend the opening of an Armenian school, since the school’s opening is crucial to the country as it indicates the presence of youth and the preservation of national values.”
He said that they must always be on the side of youth because they are inheritors. Extending special thanks to Gevorg Arabian, Manuel Valls said it was a right decision to name the school after Gevorg Arabian. According to the French Prime Minister, the school has a contract with the French government and enjoys a status of peer in the national education system of France.
“Emblematic is the fact that the inauguration of the school coincides with the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. This April 24, the President of France joined the Armenian people to commemorate the genocide victims in Yerevan. In the meantime, I was standing by the Armenians at the monument to Komitas in Paris. It was very important for France to demonstrate that we stood by the Armenians because the Armenian people had suffered a lot, and I calling a genocide what happened. Yes, it was genocide, and we must fight together against its denial,” Manuel Valls stated.
