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ANKARA: French Parliament's vote creates shock waves

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  • ANKARA: French Parliament's vote creates shock waves

    Hurriyet, Turkey
    Oct 13 2006

    French Parliament's vote creates shock waves
    Friday , 13 October 2006


    In France, a cradle of democracy which helped make freedom a
    universal value, the French National Parliament yesterday voted to
    approve a bill mandating jail time and monetary fines for people
    publicly denying the so-called Armenian genocide.


    Despite yesterday's overwhelming vote of approval however, the bill
    must pass through the French Senate and then be signed by the French
    president before being put into implementation. Also casting an
    ambigious shadow overt the parliament's vote yesterday was the fact
    that the French government repeated both before and after the vote
    that it did not support the bill in question.

    Paris administration underscores its opposition to the bill

    The French Foreign Ministry issued a statement following the vote
    saying that it "wanted very much" to continue dialogue between Paris
    and Ankara. Foreign Ministry spokeperson Jean Baptiste Mattei said
    "Just as we wish to carry on our strong friendship and our
    cooperative ties, we want to continue our dialogue with Turkey."
    Spokesperson Mattei also referred to the "genocide denial" bill
    approved yesterday as both "unnecessary" and "untimely" in his
    statements.

    Another voice of opposition against the "genocide denial" bill came
    yesterday from European Affairs Minister Catherine Colonna, who stood
    to address the national assembly prior to its morning vote on the
    bill. Said Colonna, "We as the government are opposed to this bill.
    As it is, the parliament already voted to officially recognize the
    Armenian genocide in 2001. President Jacques Chirac mentioned the
    genocide clearly on his visit to the Armenian capital Yerevan. And
    looking at things politically, Turkey has already begun work on this
    subject, looking back at history, as have other countries. We must
    encourage this work. This is why we, as the government, oppose this
    bill."

    Out of the entire French Parliament, which has 571 seats, a total of
    125 MPs participated in yesterday's vote. Out of these 125 votes, 106
    were in support of the bill, with 19 opposing.

    Mesrob II: This will only butter the bread of radicals everywhere

    Speaking in reaction to news that the French Parliament had passed
    the "genocide denial" bill, Patriarch Mesrob II, the leader of the
    Armenian Orthodox community in Turkey, issued this warning:

    "The French, who have in the past put up serious blockades in front
    of Turkey during its quest for EU membership, have now dealt a
    serious blow to the already constrained dialogue between Turkey and
    Armenia. The law will only butter the bread of both radical Turks and
    radical Armenians."
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