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FRENCH FM URGES CALM REACTION TO GENOCIDE LAW
EuroNews
Jan 24 2012
France
France has urged Turkey not to overreact to the French Senate's
approval of a bill making it illegal to deny that the mass killings
of Armenians by Ottoman Turks after World War I was genocide.
Ankara has warned of severe diplomatic consequences, while the matter
is a controversial issue in France too. The French foreign minister
did not support the move and is urging Turkey not to take action.
Speaking on French television he said: "I think this initiative is
inappropriate. Well, anyway, parliament has decided that. What I want
to do today is to call on our Turkish friends to stay cool. After
this wave reaction, a little excessive, it must be said, I'm sure
we'll find again a constructive relationship, I put out my hand and
I hope it will be shaken one day".
The outcome of the vote has been welcomed by Armenia. It has also
delighted France's more than half-million-strong Armenian community.
The bill now goes to President Nicolas Sarkozy, a strong supporter
of the proposal, for ratification. Many Turks are among those who
suspect the law is part of Sarkozy's political agenda; he faces
a presidential election this year and France's Armenian community
represents a not-insignificant electoral minority.
Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan told members of parliament
in Ankara that the law was "discriminatory" and "racist."
The French deputy who proposed the bill and member of Sarkozy's UMP
party Valerie Boyer, said it was a tremendous step: "It's a very
important moment, a great moment for human rights and human dignity.
I'm very glad that parliament has adopted the law today, and I hope
that this law move forward peacefully."
EuroNews
Jan 24 2012
France
France has urged Turkey not to overreact to the French Senate's
approval of a bill making it illegal to deny that the mass killings
of Armenians by Ottoman Turks after World War I was genocide.
Ankara has warned of severe diplomatic consequences, while the matter
is a controversial issue in France too. The French foreign minister
did not support the move and is urging Turkey not to take action.
Speaking on French television he said: "I think this initiative is
inappropriate. Well, anyway, parliament has decided that. What I want
to do today is to call on our Turkish friends to stay cool. After
this wave reaction, a little excessive, it must be said, I'm sure
we'll find again a constructive relationship, I put out my hand and
I hope it will be shaken one day".
The outcome of the vote has been welcomed by Armenia. It has also
delighted France's more than half-million-strong Armenian community.
The bill now goes to President Nicolas Sarkozy, a strong supporter
of the proposal, for ratification. Many Turks are among those who
suspect the law is part of Sarkozy's political agenda; he faces
a presidential election this year and France's Armenian community
represents a not-insignificant electoral minority.
Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan told members of parliament
in Ankara that the law was "discriminatory" and "racist."
The French deputy who proposed the bill and member of Sarkozy's UMP
party Valerie Boyer, said it was a tremendous step: "It's a very
important moment, a great moment for human rights and human dignity.
I'm very glad that parliament has adopted the law today, and I hope
that this law move forward peacefully."