The Australian Greens party have added the recognition of the right to self-determination of the Armenians of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh) to their party policy platform, following meetings between their candidate in the upcoming Bennelong by-election, Justin Alick and representatives of the Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC-AU).
The Australian Greens, who also reiterated their party’s recognition of the Armenian Genocide, have become one of the first non-Armenian political parties in the world to adopt what ANC-AU called a “principled position” on the Republic of Artsakh.
The Australian Greens’ party position also includes a call “on the Commonwealth Government to officially recognise the independence of the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh [Artsakh] and strengthen Australia’s relationship with Nagorno-Karabakh and its citizens.”
ANC-AU Managing Director, Vache Kahramanian said: “We sincerely thank the The Australian Greens hierarchy and their Bennelong by-election candidate Justin Alick for proving their belief in the principles of self-determination by formally recognising the Republic of Artsakh.”
“Nagorno Karabakh has been part of the greater Armenian motherland for millennia, and the continued threat of the war-mongering, corrupt dictatorship governing Azerbaijan means the world must take notice and speak out for the human right to self-determination of the Armenian citizens of the region, who have voted overwhelmingly in a referendum declaring independence.”
Following the 2016 federal election, the Australian Greens have nine senators and one member in the lower house, 23 elected representatives across state and territory parliaments, more than 100 local councillors, and over 15,000 party members.