CANBERRA: On Wednesday, 24 June 2026, representatives from the Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC-AU) National Head Office met with members of the Federal Parliament's crossbench to provide a briefing on key issues affecting the Armenian-Australian community.
Convened by Ms Nicolette Boele MP, the Member for Bradfield, the briefing was attended by Dr Sophie Scamps MP, Ms Zali Steggall MP, Dr Monique Ryan MP, as well as staff representing five additional crossbench parliamentarians.
The ANC-AU was honoured to welcome Dr Deborah Mayersen, a leading genocide scholar and longstanding advocate for genocide recognition, who delivered an overview of the 1915 Armenian, Assyrian and Greek Genocides, Australia's humanitarian response, and the importance of formal legislative recognition.
To address the ongoing consequences of Azerbaijan's ethnic cleansing of Artsakh, the ANC-AU presented a legal briefing prepared by Ms Siranush Sahakyan, the international human rights lawyer representing the 19 Armenian hostages before international courts. The briefing outlined the unlawful detention of the Artsakh hostages, the ongoing destruction of Armenian cultural heritage, the right of return for forcibly displaced Armenians, and Azerbaijan's continued occupation of sovereign territory within the Republic of Armenia.
Following the briefing, Ms Boele, Dr Scamps and Ms Steggall - whose electorates are collectively home to more than 16,000 Armenian-Australians - wrote a joint letter to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator the Hon. Penny Wong, marking 1,000 days since the imprisonment of the 19 Armenian hostages and calling for stronger action from the Australian Government.
Sent on 29 June 2026, the letter urged the Australian Government to:
- Publicly condemn the politically motivated trials and unlawful detention of the Armenian hostages by Azerbaijan.
- Call for the immediate and unconditional release of all Armenian hostages detained in Azerbaijan and utilise all appropriate diplomatic avenues to secure their freedom.
- Condemn the ethnic cleansing of the Indigenous Armenian population of the Republic of Artsakh and support their right to return safely, voluntarily and sustainably to their ancestral homeland under appropriate international protections and guarantees.
The crossbench letter accompanies more than 150 letters sent by Armenian-Australian community members, elected representatives and community leaders as part of the ANC-AU's nationwide advocacy campaign calling on the Australian Government to adopt a stronger public stance against Azerbaijan's unlawful detention of the Armenian hostages.
The ANC-AU thanked Ms Boele for convening the parliamentary briefing and acknowledged Dr Scamps and Ms Steggall for their leadership in supporting the letter-writing campaign.
ANC-AU Political Affairs Director Sebastian Majarian said the crossbench's support demonstrates the growing momentum behind the community's advocacy.
"We are extremely grateful to Ms Boele, Dr Scamps and Ms Steggall for amplifying our community's calls for action on the hostage issue and standing in solidarity with the Armenian-Australian community."
“While we acknowledge that the Australian Government has raised this issue through diplomatic channels, much more must be done. Australia should publicly and unequivocally condemn these politically motivated detentions and join the growing international effort calling for the immediate and unconditional release of the Armenian hostages."
