YEREVAN (news.am)—The National Archives of Armenia will publish three volumes containing eyewitness accounts of the Armenian Genocide by 1915, announced the archives director Amatuni Virabyan during a press conference Tuesday.
According Virabyan, each volume of what will be called “Vshtapatum” will be 500 pages.
“The first volume is ready and is currently being translated into Russian and English. The second volume is being prepared for publication. The first volume is devoted to the province of Van, the second – to the province of Bitlis, the third – to the province of Erzurum (Garin),” explained Virabyan.
The publication is funded through donation.
Virabyan explained that this initiative is a continuation of a effort begun in 1916 by legendry author Hovaness Tumanian, who formed a commission to gather testimonials of Genocide survivors. These documents have been archived in Armenia.
Virabyan expressed hope that this effort will contribute to the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide.
The archives director also warned that Turkey is stepping up its efforts to falsify history and deny the Genocide ahead of its 100th anniversary.
He cited a new book, “Armenian Question in 120 documents from Russian State Archives” by Turkish writer Mehmet Perinçek as another example of historical revisionism.
According to Virabyan, the author of the book used excerpts of documents that illustrate the Turkish version of events and ignored survivor testimonials.
He explained that the book has been more enthusiastically embraced in Azerbaijan that in Turkey, where reaction to it has been more restrained.
“In Moscow libraries, one can see at least ten anti-Armenian books written by Azerbaijani writers in Russian. The books are published with nice designs and are available at a reasonable price,” said Virabyan said, adding that Armenia has taken no initiative.
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