Llywydd to dedicate Armenian memorial

Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas, Llywydd of the National Assembly for Wales will speak at a ceremony to unveil a memorial to those who lost their lives in the Armenian genocide of 1915. The memorial in the gardens of the Temple of Peace in Cardiff has been erected by the Wales-Armenian Society and will be consecrated in a service conducted by His Grace Bishop Nathan Hovhannisian, Pontifical Legate and Primate of the Armenian Apostolic Church of Great Britain. Also in attendance will be His Grace David Yeoman, the Assistant Bishop of Llandaff, and the Reverend Stuart Windsor, the National Director of Christian Solidarity Worldwide. This is the first time in the UK that a piece of public land has been donated for an Armenian memorial and the first monument commissioned by non-Armenians in the UK. Lord Elis-Thomas will receive, on behalf of the people of Wales, a marble cross, a khatchkar.  He said “I am greatly honoured to accept the khatchkar, and to dedicate the cross to the memory of those people of Armenia who lost their lives in the genocide. Wales’s relationship with one of the oldest states and the oldest Christian Church in the world goes back centuries and the fact that the funds for this fine memorial have been raised entirely by the Armenians who live in Wales and that it will occupy a special place here in the Temple of Peace, reflects the vibrant Welsh interest in the history of Armenia.” The service takes place at the Temple of Peace, King George 7^th Avenue Cardiff at 12.30 on Saturday November 3^rd.