Canada-Armenia Parliamentary Friendship Group Re-established

14 June, 2006

On June 14, 2006 the Canada-Armenia Parliamentary Friendship (CAPF) for the 39th Parliament was established at a meeting in the House of Commons.

House of Commons and Canadian Senate members were invited by MP Gary Goodyear (Conservative-Cambridge) to attend the founding meeting and elect a new executive for CAPF. 28 members of Parliament and Senators joined CAPF on the date of its establishment.

In his opening remarks Mr. Goodyear thanked MPs and Senators and said: “Your presence demonstrates your support for the positive relationship that exists between Armenia and Canada. As you know, our Prime Minister recently officially recognized the Armenian Genocide of 1915 in Parliament. We believe that this was a positive step toward healing the wounds of the past and paving the road for a peaceful and prosperous relationship between Canada and Armenia.”

Afterwards, Mr. Goodyear called upon MP Derek Lee (Liberal-Scarborough-Rouge River) to preside over the election of the CAPF executive.

The following members were elected to the executive:

Gary Goodyear - Chairman

Nicole Demers (Bloc Quebecois-Laval) - Vice-President

Jim Karygiannis (Liberal-Scarborough-Agincourt) - Vice-President

Alexa McDonough (NDP-Halifax) - Vice-President

Raymonde Folco (Liberal-Laval-Les Iles) - Secretary

The Members authorized the newly elected executive to fill in the vacant post of Treasurer, Membership and two Directors at a later date.

In his "thank-you" remarks, Mr. Goodyear said: “Canada’s know-how and experience is much needed in Armenia. Canada should stand in solidarity with Armenia and reward its people for their resolve and commitment to the principles of democracy, free market economy, and human rights. Furthermore, Canada should establish diplomatic presence in Yerevan, the capital of the Republic of Armenia. Canada's diplomatic presence will have a pivotal role in enhancing our country's image in the region.”

“By forming this friendship group we send a clear message to the Armenian people that they are not alone, that Canada and the international community will stand by them to overcome the current difficult transitional period,” he concluded.

Arman Akopian, the Charge d’Affaires of the Republic of Armenia in Canada thanked the Canadian parliamentarians for their support and commitment to foster and enhance strong and positive bi-lateral relationship between Canada and Armenia. He also invited the members of CAPF to visit Armenia to better understand and appreciate Armenia and the Armenian people.

CAPF new president invited Aris Babikian, executive director of the Armenian National Committee of Canada (ANCC), to relay the message of the Canadian-Armenian Community. Mr. Babikian said that the establishment of CAPF marked another milestone for ANCC and the Canadian-Armenian community. He said that he was gratified to see “so many old friends of ANCC accepted to join CAPF in addition to new members.” He pledged ANCC unwavering support to CAPF to achieve its mission and its goals.

MP Lee said that ANCC support is “highly valuable for CAPF's success." He noted that many parliamentary friendship groups are created during the lifetime of a parliament. “Most of them are dormant and inactive. The support of the Armenian community will insure CAPF's productivity."

Senator Grafstein emphasized the importance of economic incentives to foster peace, prosperity and harmony in the region.

At the conclusion of the meeting, ANCC hosted a reception for CAPF members and Armenian Embassy representatives. The ANCC contingent was headed by Krikor Der Ghazarian, Jean Meguerditchian, and Paul Douzjian.

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