STEPANAKERT, APRIL 24, ARTSAKHPRESS: The traditional torchlight procession, this year with the slogan “Wake up, Lao”, took place on the initiative of the ARF Artsakh Youth Union. It  started from the yard of St. Hakob Church in Stepanakert.

The participants  with torches, carrying the 100-meter-long flag of Artsakh walked along the central streets of the town up to the memorial complex of the victims of the Armenian Genocide.

Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of the Republic of Artsakh and the member of the ARF Dashnaktsutyun Lernik Hovhannisyan told ''Artsakhpress'' that since 1911, the Young Turks have clearly worked out the strategic plan and strategy, which is the main ideology of Turkey today.

"Their genocidal policy has not been changed; just the tactics and methods have been changed. From the 1915 Armenian Genocide until today, it is the same genocidal policy, which means not only the destruction of the Armenian population, not only the occupation of territories, but also the cultural ethnocide policy.

For 107 years, the position of the destruction of Armenians has been the basis of the policy of Turkey and its satellite, artificial Azerbaijan," L. Hovhannisyan explained.

The traditional torchlight procession was attended by the President of the Republic of Artsakh Arayik Harutyunyan, the third President of the Republic of Artsakh Bako Sahakyan, philanthropist Ruben Vardanyan  and  representatives of legislative and executive bodies.