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ANKARA TO PRESSURE PARIS TO REJECT ITS 'GENOCIDE' BILL
Hurriyet Daily News
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ankara-to-pressure-paris-to-reject-its-genocide-bill.aspx?pageID=238&nID=9212&NewsCatID=338
Dec 15 2011
Turkey
A delegation led by Volkan Bozkır, the head of Parliament's foreign
affairs commission, will pay a visit to Paris to lobby for disapproval
of a 'genocide' bill. AA Photo
A Turkish parliamentarian delegation will pay a two-day visit to
Paris from Dec. 19 to 20 to warn the French Parliament of serious
damage to bilateral ties if it passes a bill that would criminalize
denial of the Armenian "genocide."
Led by Volkan Bozkır, the head of Parliament's foreign affairs
commission, the delegation will include Kasım Gulpınar of the
Justice and Development Party (AKP), Osman Koruturk and Haluk Koc
of the Republican People's Party (CHP) and Yusuf Halacoglu of the
Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). The delegation will meet both with
French lawmakers and non-governmental groups ahead of the vote in
the lower house of French Parliament, expected on Dec. 22, Bozkır
told the Hurriyet Daily News yesterday.
He dismissed the bill as a political maneuver to lure support from
the Armenian community in France's forthcoming presidential elections.
"Maybe we will fail to dissuade our French colleagues from approving
the bill, but our main objective is to inform the French public about
the damage that the bill would cause," he said. Even if passed, the
bill will not take effect automatically, Bozkır said, adding that
a Senate approval was also needed. "The Senate will close on Feb. 22
before the elections. The bill will become invalid if further steps
are not taken until that time," he said.
The CHP's Koruturk said the bill flouted freedom of speech and freedom
of research. "Historians are also opposed to this law on grounds
that it would pose obstacles to history research," he said. It was
uncertain whether the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) would join the
delegation. "We have not received an invitation yet. We will decide
after we get it," said Nazmi Gur, the BDP member of the foreign
affairs commission.
Other attempts to penalize the denial of the Armenian "genocide"
have failed in France since the early 2000s after Paris officially
recognized the killings of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire from
1915 to 1917 as genocide.
Businessmen should act: BagıÅ~_
EU Minister Egemen BagıÅ~_ voiced hope yesterday that French
entrepreneurs doing business in Turkey would take action to lobby
French lawmakers against the bill. "I believe that they will put their
weight [against the bill] because they know how sensitive the Turkish
people are on this issue," BagıÅ~_ said in the northern city of Rize.
"Bilateral ties with France are very important. Presidents, prime
ministers and ministers have passed, but Turkish-French friendship
has persisted," he said.
Referring to some of Rize's best-known local products, BagıÅ~_
said tongue-in-cheek: "If there are people who have difficulties in
understanding Turkey, I recommend that they eat Anzer honey and drink
Rize tea. In this way, they may cheer up, relax and relieve themselves
a bit from the stress of the approaching elections."
Hurriyet Daily News
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ankara-to-pressure-paris-to-reject-its-genocide-bill.aspx?pageID=238&nID=9212&NewsCatID=338
Dec 15 2011
Turkey
A delegation led by Volkan Bozkır, the head of Parliament's foreign
affairs commission, will pay a visit to Paris to lobby for disapproval
of a 'genocide' bill. AA Photo
A Turkish parliamentarian delegation will pay a two-day visit to
Paris from Dec. 19 to 20 to warn the French Parliament of serious
damage to bilateral ties if it passes a bill that would criminalize
denial of the Armenian "genocide."
Led by Volkan Bozkır, the head of Parliament's foreign affairs
commission, the delegation will include Kasım Gulpınar of the
Justice and Development Party (AKP), Osman Koruturk and Haluk Koc
of the Republican People's Party (CHP) and Yusuf Halacoglu of the
Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). The delegation will meet both with
French lawmakers and non-governmental groups ahead of the vote in
the lower house of French Parliament, expected on Dec. 22, Bozkır
told the Hurriyet Daily News yesterday.
He dismissed the bill as a political maneuver to lure support from
the Armenian community in France's forthcoming presidential elections.
"Maybe we will fail to dissuade our French colleagues from approving
the bill, but our main objective is to inform the French public about
the damage that the bill would cause," he said. Even if passed, the
bill will not take effect automatically, Bozkır said, adding that
a Senate approval was also needed. "The Senate will close on Feb. 22
before the elections. The bill will become invalid if further steps
are not taken until that time," he said.
The CHP's Koruturk said the bill flouted freedom of speech and freedom
of research. "Historians are also opposed to this law on grounds
that it would pose obstacles to history research," he said. It was
uncertain whether the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) would join the
delegation. "We have not received an invitation yet. We will decide
after we get it," said Nazmi Gur, the BDP member of the foreign
affairs commission.
Other attempts to penalize the denial of the Armenian "genocide"
have failed in France since the early 2000s after Paris officially
recognized the killings of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire from
1915 to 1917 as genocide.
Businessmen should act: BagıÅ~_
EU Minister Egemen BagıÅ~_ voiced hope yesterday that French
entrepreneurs doing business in Turkey would take action to lobby
French lawmakers against the bill. "I believe that they will put their
weight [against the bill] because they know how sensitive the Turkish
people are on this issue," BagıÅ~_ said in the northern city of Rize.
"Bilateral ties with France are very important. Presidents, prime
ministers and ministers have passed, but Turkish-French friendship
has persisted," he said.
Referring to some of Rize's best-known local products, BagıÅ~_
said tongue-in-cheek: "If there are people who have difficulties in
understanding Turkey, I recommend that they eat Anzer honey and drink
Rize tea. In this way, they may cheer up, relax and relieve themselves
a bit from the stress of the approaching elections."