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FRENCH SENATE DEBATES GENOCIDE BILL AMID TURKEY TENSIONS
Monsters and Critics.com
Jan 23 2012
Paris - France and Turkey were again headed for a diplomatic showdown
Monday as the French Senate began debating a bill making it a crime
to deny that Armenians suffered genocide at the hands of Ottoman Turks.
Turkey has threatened diplomatic and economic sanctions against France
if the bill, which passed the lower house of parliament in December,
is adopted by the upper house, as is expected.
The bill proposes to punish people who deny or 'outrageously minimize'
genocides recognized by France with a year's imprisonment and 45,000
euros (57,000 dollars) in fines.
France officially recognizes two genocides: the Nazi Holocaust of
Jews during World War II and the deaths of hundreds of thousands of
Armenians in eastern Turkey between 1915 and 1917.
The country already has a law punishing Holocaust denial. This bill
aims to extend the sanctions contained in that law to the Armenian
case.
Several hundred people demonstrated outside the Senate - some for
the bill, others against it - as the debate got underway.
Many senators were absent, anxious to avoid voting on a bill that
has damaged relations with a key NATO ally.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Monday warned France not
to underestimate Turkey, saying Ankara wouldn't take what it sees as
anti-Turkish legislation lying down.
Many Turks already feel betrayed by France because of President
Nicolas Sarkozy's firm opposition to Turkey joining the European Union.
After December's Assembly vote, Ankara suspended all bilateral
cooperation and temporarily recalled the Turkish ambassador.
The Turkish embassy in Paris says this time diplomatic ties could be
downgraded and that French firms could find themselves frozen out of
Turkish government contracts.
The French foreign ministry on Monday called for restraint and
emphasized the importance of Turkey 'as a partner and ally.'
Opening the debate in the Senate, Patrick Ollier, the minister in
charge of relations with parliament, said the bill was 'not about
stating history but about treating genocides recognized by France
equally.'
'You can't punish denial of one and not the other,' he said.
Armenians say around 1.5 million people were killed or died during
forced marches to the Syrian desert between 1915 and 1917.
Turkey estimates between 300,000 and 500,000 people died but rejects
the genocide label, saying that there was no systematic policy to
destroy the Christian Armenian community and that many Muslim Turks
also died in the violence, which took place during World War I.
Erdogan has accused Sarkozy of using the bill to win the support
of France's small but influential Armenian community ahead of this
year's presidential and parliamentary elections.
Before becoming president in 2007, Sarkozy - who is expected to seek
reelection in April - promised the Armenian community to push through
legislation banning genocide denial.
Monsters and Critics.com
Jan 23 2012
Paris - France and Turkey were again headed for a diplomatic showdown
Monday as the French Senate began debating a bill making it a crime
to deny that Armenians suffered genocide at the hands of Ottoman Turks.
Turkey has threatened diplomatic and economic sanctions against France
if the bill, which passed the lower house of parliament in December,
is adopted by the upper house, as is expected.
The bill proposes to punish people who deny or 'outrageously minimize'
genocides recognized by France with a year's imprisonment and 45,000
euros (57,000 dollars) in fines.
France officially recognizes two genocides: the Nazi Holocaust of
Jews during World War II and the deaths of hundreds of thousands of
Armenians in eastern Turkey between 1915 and 1917.
The country already has a law punishing Holocaust denial. This bill
aims to extend the sanctions contained in that law to the Armenian
case.
Several hundred people demonstrated outside the Senate - some for
the bill, others against it - as the debate got underway.
Many senators were absent, anxious to avoid voting on a bill that
has damaged relations with a key NATO ally.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Monday warned France not
to underestimate Turkey, saying Ankara wouldn't take what it sees as
anti-Turkish legislation lying down.
Many Turks already feel betrayed by France because of President
Nicolas Sarkozy's firm opposition to Turkey joining the European Union.
After December's Assembly vote, Ankara suspended all bilateral
cooperation and temporarily recalled the Turkish ambassador.
The Turkish embassy in Paris says this time diplomatic ties could be
downgraded and that French firms could find themselves frozen out of
Turkish government contracts.
The French foreign ministry on Monday called for restraint and
emphasized the importance of Turkey 'as a partner and ally.'
Opening the debate in the Senate, Patrick Ollier, the minister in
charge of relations with parliament, said the bill was 'not about
stating history but about treating genocides recognized by France
equally.'
'You can't punish denial of one and not the other,' he said.
Armenians say around 1.5 million people were killed or died during
forced marches to the Syrian desert between 1915 and 1917.
Turkey estimates between 300,000 and 500,000 people died but rejects
the genocide label, saying that there was no systematic policy to
destroy the Christian Armenian community and that many Muslim Turks
also died in the violence, which took place during World War I.
Erdogan has accused Sarkozy of using the bill to win the support
of France's small but influential Armenian community ahead of this
year's presidential and parliamentary elections.
Before becoming president in 2007, Sarkozy - who is expected to seek
reelection in April - promised the Armenian community to push through
legislation banning genocide denial.