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FRENCH PRESIDENT LIKELY TO OK BILL ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
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http://www.4-traders.com/news/French-President-Likely-To-OK-Bill-On-Armenian-Genocide--13982220/
Jan 24 2012
PARIS -(Dow Jones)- French Interior Minister Claude Gueant said
President Nicolas Sarkozy is likely to sign into law the bill passed
Monday in senate making it a crime to deny that the massacre of
Armenians in 1915 was genocide.
"In a republic like ours, when parliament votes a bill, it is signed
into law," Gueant said in an interview with local cable TV news channel
iTele. He said the law doesn't seek to attack Turkey, but seeks to
punish "negationist attitudes" towards genocide crimes. "The Turks
should remain our friends," Gueant added.
The proposal is set to make the denial of genocide, crimes against
humanity and war crimes that are recognized by French law punishable by
up to a year in prison and a 45,000 euro ($58,143) fine. The only two
mass killings recognized by French law as genocide are the killing of
Armenians during World War I and the Holocaust. Denying the Holocaust
is already illegal in France.
Turkey vowed to take reprisals against France after the vote. The
Turkish government accused France of flouting international law and
pledged to "take every step" to counter the "irresponsible" decision.
"In case of the completion of the finalization process for the law,
we will not hesitate to implement, as we deem appropriate, the measures
that we have considered in advance," the Turkish foreign ministry said.
Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was set to address his
ruling AK Party on Tuesday in Ankara, where he is expected to detail
his government's response, Turkish television reported.
In a separate interview with Canal Plus TV channel, French Foreign
Minister Alain Juppe, who has said he opposes the bill, downplayed the
importance of the vote and urged the Turkish government to remain calm.
-By Inti Landauro, Dow Jones Newswires; +33 1 4017 1740;
[email protected]
$-Traders
http://www.4-traders.com/news/French-President-Likely-To-OK-Bill-On-Armenian-Genocide--13982220/
Jan 24 2012
PARIS -(Dow Jones)- French Interior Minister Claude Gueant said
President Nicolas Sarkozy is likely to sign into law the bill passed
Monday in senate making it a crime to deny that the massacre of
Armenians in 1915 was genocide.
"In a republic like ours, when parliament votes a bill, it is signed
into law," Gueant said in an interview with local cable TV news channel
iTele. He said the law doesn't seek to attack Turkey, but seeks to
punish "negationist attitudes" towards genocide crimes. "The Turks
should remain our friends," Gueant added.
The proposal is set to make the denial of genocide, crimes against
humanity and war crimes that are recognized by French law punishable by
up to a year in prison and a 45,000 euro ($58,143) fine. The only two
mass killings recognized by French law as genocide are the killing of
Armenians during World War I and the Holocaust. Denying the Holocaust
is already illegal in France.
Turkey vowed to take reprisals against France after the vote. The
Turkish government accused France of flouting international law and
pledged to "take every step" to counter the "irresponsible" decision.
"In case of the completion of the finalization process for the law,
we will not hesitate to implement, as we deem appropriate, the measures
that we have considered in advance," the Turkish foreign ministry said.
Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was set to address his
ruling AK Party on Tuesday in Ankara, where he is expected to detail
his government's response, Turkish television reported.
In a separate interview with Canal Plus TV channel, French Foreign
Minister Alain Juppe, who has said he opposes the bill, downplayed the
importance of the vote and urged the Turkish government to remain calm.
-By Inti Landauro, Dow Jones Newswires; +33 1 4017 1740;
[email protected]