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Belgian Draft Law Proposes Criminalizing Genocide Denial

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  • Belgian Draft Law Proposes Criminalizing Genocide Denial

    Armenpress

    BELGIAN DRAFT LAW PROPOSES CRIMINALIZING GENOCIDE
    DENIAL

    BRUSSELS, MAY 12, ARMENPRESS: Belgium's Reformist
    Movement party proposed a draft law in Parliament,
    which would expand the definition of genocide denial
    to the Armenian genocide. It is already a crime to
    deny the Holocaust in Belgium, and the lawmakers who
    proposed the bill want to extend the law to denial of
    the Armenian genocide as well.
    The Belgian Parliament failed to enact the same law
    two years ago, fearing reprisals from Turkey. Meantime
    Turkey's ambassadors to Canada and France have
    returned to their posts after being recalled to Ankara
    because of disagreements on whether the massacres of
    Armenians during World War I constituted genocide, a
    Turkish diplomat was quoted by France Press as saying
    Thursday.
    A first reading of the French bill, proposed by the
    opposition Socialist Party, is scheduled for May 18.
    It follows a 2001 French law officially recognizing
    the Armenian genocide and, if approved, the new bill
    would provide for a five-year sentence and a 45,000
    Euro (57,000 Dollar) fine for any person who denies
    that the 1915-17 massacres constitute genocide.
    Turkish Lawmaker visiting France said they "relayed
    the Turkish people's strong reaction to our French
    colleagues" and warned that there were calls for a
    boycott of French goods in Turkey and that
    Turkish-French relations would be severely harmed if
    the bill is passed, Turkey's Anatolia news agency
    reported.
    Turkey was also angered when Canadian Prime
    Minister Steven Harper reaffirmed the Armenian
    genocide during commemorations of the 91st anniversary
    of the Genocide on April 24. The Turkish foreign
    ministry said at the time that Harper's words were
    "appalling" and would "negatively affect" bilateral
    ties. In protest, Turkey withdrew from a planned
    multi-nation military exercise to be held in Canada,
    officials in Ottawa said on Wednesday.
    In 2002, the Canadian Senate recognized the
    Armenian genocide as the first genocide of the 20th
    century and the House of Commons followed suit two
    years later.

    From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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