Armenian Genocide Recognition in Australia

This paper will draw on the author’s firsthand experience of lobbying the Australian federal government to recognize the Armenian Genocide. The paper will explore the history of Armenian Genocide recognition in Australia and the issues surrounding such recognition. It will analyze the geopolitical and historical issues that currently represent a barrier to the Australian federal government recognizing the Armenian Genocide, such as the specifics of Australia’s relationship with Türkiye, which date back to World War I and the Gallipoli campaign of 1915. The significance of Gallipoli in Australian military history and culture and how it impacts Australian recognition of the Armenian Genocide will be examined. The paper will also discuss the work being done to overcome these barriers, through the ‘Joint Justice Initiative’ that the author participates in. In doing so, this paper will highlight how academic research and scholarship contribute to this work, demonstrating that academia is a crucial civil society participant in activism. The paper will also compare Armenian Genocide recognition in Australia (or lack thereof) with recognition of the Holocaust, while also acknowledging the Australian state’s lack of willingness to deal with its own genocide of Indigenous peoples.