The committee on constitutional law of the French National Assembly has passed a bill which will make denial of the killings of over 1.5 million Armenians in 1915 by Turkey as genocide a crime.
The bill, which will now be sent to the National Assembly, will make genocide denial a criminal offence and carries a fine of 45,000 euros and a one year prison sentence for those found guilty.
It was proposed by parliamentarian Valerie Boyer and co-signed by 40 parliament members of the Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) and the New Center parties. Boyer commented,
“I hope that we will go to the end and that France will always be a country of human rights.”
The move came as Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan spoke to Diaspora Armenians in Marseille, telling them,
''We are sure Turkey is going to repent. It's neither a precondition nor an aspiration to take revenge. Turkey should face its history. Turkish leadership can find the strength to reconsider its approaches towards the Armenian Genocide.”
“Our position hasn't changed and it's quite clear. We are ready to have normal relations with Turkey as it befits neighboring countries. For instance, Poland and Germany were such neighboring countries when the Chancellor Willy Brandt, realizing the crime committed by his country, knelt at Warsaw ghetto.
“Sooner or later Turkey, which considers itself a European country, will have leadership which will bow at Tsitsernakaberd. Better soon but it’s the matter of the Turkish people. We don’t oblige them anything. They should do that for the sake of the Turkish people as Willy Brandt did it for the sake of Germans.''
Earlier this year French president Nicolas Sarkozy, reiterated his commitment in obtaining recognition for the genocide, saying,
“Rest assured that France will not stop its commitment, since the massacres have not been recognized properly by the descendents of the perpetrators.”
He also warned Turkey that if they do not do this “then doubtless we will have to go further."
See our earlier posts:
France warns Turkey over Armenian Genocide (Oct 2011)
Sarkozy reiterates pledge for Armenian genocide recognition (Oct 2011)
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