Tweet
FRENCH PARLIAMENTARIANS APPEAL GENOCIDE BILL, TURKEY APPLAUDS MOVE
Today's Zaman
Jan 31 2012
Turkey
French parliamentarians appealed to the country's supreme
Constitutional Council to overturn a bill that penalizes denial of
Armenian genocide claims, a development that raised prospects of
annulment of the controversial legislation which has angered Turkey.
The council is now expected to examine whether the bill, passed in
both houses of the French Parliament, violates the French constitution
and its founding base of freedom of expression.
At least 60 signatures from either houses of parliament, the
Senate or the National Assembly, are needed to appeal a bill at the
Constitutional Council.
Some 77 senators from across the political divide made the appeal
to the court. Another 65 lawmakers in the lower house agreed to
the appeal.
The 11-member Constitutional Council has 30 days to decide whether
the legislation is unconstitutional. But it may be forced to rule in
eight days if the government requests an emergency decision.
The bill, which received final parliamentary approval on Jan. 23,
needs to be approved by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who backs
it, in order to go into effect. But the Constitutional Council may
now annul it on grounds of violating the French constitution before
it gets to Sarkozy.
The Constitutional Council, whose 11 members include former presidents
and others appointed by the president, and presidents of the Senate
and the National Assembly, rule on conformity of legislation after
they have been voted by Parliament and before they are signed into law
by the president. Former French presidents Valerie Giscard d'Estaing
and Jacques Chirac are currently members of the council, headed by
Jean-Louis Debre.
If the bill goes into effect, those who deny that the killings
of Armenians during World War I in eastern Anatolia amounted to
genocide will face punishment. It sets a punishment of up to one
year in prison and a fine of 45,000 euros for those who deny or
"outrageously minimize" the killings -- putting such action on par
with denial of the Holocaust.
Turkey has protested the bill, saying it is an attack on freedom of
expression. It has also warned it would impose unspecified sanctions if
the measure eventually goes into effect. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan attacked the French parliament for passing what he said was
"discriminatory and racist" legislation.
Turkey hails appeal On Tuesday, Erdogan praised the French
parliamentarians for seeking to reject the bill. "This is what befits
France. The senators did what befits France," he told reporters.
Observers say French senators and lawmakers were under intense
pressure from leaders of their parties in order to not appeal the
legislation, in order not to upset ethnic Armenian voters ahead of
upcoming presidential elections. Both incumbent President Sarkozy
and opposition Socialist Party's contender Francois Hollande are
candidates in the upcoming polls.
"Both opposition and government party leaders imposed pressure on
senators and National Assembly members so that this bill is signed
into law quickly," Turkish Ambassador to France Tahsin Burcuoglu said
in televised comments after the French parliamentarians appealed the
bill. "It is never easy for politicians to do it. They have shown
courage and I thank them for this," Burcuoglu said.
President Abdullah Gul also lauded the move, saying he knew "the
French would not allow such a shadow to be cast over their country."
"The Constitutional Court will deliver the right decision," Gul told
reporters during a visit to Dubai. "Freedoms are the most important
source of strength for a country. And the freedom of expression
is what lies at the heart of freedoms. This bill is detrimental to
freedom of expression."
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu also praised the French
parliamentarians, saying they "stood up for their own values."
"What needs to be done now is to wait patiently for the outcome of
the process at the Constitutional Council. I hope the Turkish-French
friendship will win in the end," he said.
From: A. Papazian
Today's Zaman
Jan 31 2012
Turkey
French parliamentarians appealed to the country's supreme
Constitutional Council to overturn a bill that penalizes denial of
Armenian genocide claims, a development that raised prospects of
annulment of the controversial legislation which has angered Turkey.
The council is now expected to examine whether the bill, passed in
both houses of the French Parliament, violates the French constitution
and its founding base of freedom of expression.
At least 60 signatures from either houses of parliament, the
Senate or the National Assembly, are needed to appeal a bill at the
Constitutional Council.
Some 77 senators from across the political divide made the appeal
to the court. Another 65 lawmakers in the lower house agreed to
the appeal.
The 11-member Constitutional Council has 30 days to decide whether
the legislation is unconstitutional. But it may be forced to rule in
eight days if the government requests an emergency decision.
The bill, which received final parliamentary approval on Jan. 23,
needs to be approved by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who backs
it, in order to go into effect. But the Constitutional Council may
now annul it on grounds of violating the French constitution before
it gets to Sarkozy.
The Constitutional Council, whose 11 members include former presidents
and others appointed by the president, and presidents of the Senate
and the National Assembly, rule on conformity of legislation after
they have been voted by Parliament and before they are signed into law
by the president. Former French presidents Valerie Giscard d'Estaing
and Jacques Chirac are currently members of the council, headed by
Jean-Louis Debre.
If the bill goes into effect, those who deny that the killings
of Armenians during World War I in eastern Anatolia amounted to
genocide will face punishment. It sets a punishment of up to one
year in prison and a fine of 45,000 euros for those who deny or
"outrageously minimize" the killings -- putting such action on par
with denial of the Holocaust.
Turkey has protested the bill, saying it is an attack on freedom of
expression. It has also warned it would impose unspecified sanctions if
the measure eventually goes into effect. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan attacked the French parliament for passing what he said was
"discriminatory and racist" legislation.
Turkey hails appeal On Tuesday, Erdogan praised the French
parliamentarians for seeking to reject the bill. "This is what befits
France. The senators did what befits France," he told reporters.
Observers say French senators and lawmakers were under intense
pressure from leaders of their parties in order to not appeal the
legislation, in order not to upset ethnic Armenian voters ahead of
upcoming presidential elections. Both incumbent President Sarkozy
and opposition Socialist Party's contender Francois Hollande are
candidates in the upcoming polls.
"Both opposition and government party leaders imposed pressure on
senators and National Assembly members so that this bill is signed
into law quickly," Turkish Ambassador to France Tahsin Burcuoglu said
in televised comments after the French parliamentarians appealed the
bill. "It is never easy for politicians to do it. They have shown
courage and I thank them for this," Burcuoglu said.
President Abdullah Gul also lauded the move, saying he knew "the
French would not allow such a shadow to be cast over their country."
"The Constitutional Court will deliver the right decision," Gul told
reporters during a visit to Dubai. "Freedoms are the most important
source of strength for a country. And the freedom of expression
is what lies at the heart of freedoms. This bill is detrimental to
freedom of expression."
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu also praised the French
parliamentarians, saying they "stood up for their own values."
"What needs to be done now is to wait patiently for the outcome of
the process at the Constitutional Council. I hope the Turkish-French
friendship will win in the end," he said.
From: A. Papazian