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BGN News, Turkey
Jan 28 2015
Europe Court has hearing on Armenian allegations denial
Europe's top human rights court held a hearing Wednesday to decide
whether a Turk who denied Armenian "genocide" allegations should have
his conviction for racial discrimination overturned. No date was set
for a ruling.
The case, referred last June to the European Court of Human Rights,
concerns the case of DoÄ?u Perinçek, a Turkish national and chairman of
the left-wing Turkish Workers' Party. Perinçek was found guilty of
racial discrimination in Switzerland for describing the so-called
"Armenian genocide" as an "international lie."
At the hearing, Amal Alamuddin, a lawyer representing the Armenian
government, said a lower court had not taken into account documents
from 1915, when the events are alleged to have occurred.
Alamuddin also said that, according to a story from that period that
appeared in New York Times, Talaat Pasha had decided to expel the
Christians from Anatolia, the Asian part of what is now Turkey.
Talaat Pasha was a member of a triumvirate that governed the Ottoman
Empire during World War II. He was assassinated in Berlin in 1921 by a
survivor of the Armenian relocation.
"There are no court trials where Talat Pasha was convicted," said
Perinçek at the hearing Wednesday. "As a result of a probe by the
British state, the case was closed as no evidence could be found about
the Armenian issue."
Perinçek called Talaat Pasha a hero of liberty.
The defendant recalled a book written by Armenia's first prime
minister, Ovanes Katchaznouni, that detailed a dialogue between the
prime minister and the pasha.
In the events that led to the present case, Perinçek, at various
conferences in Switzerland in 2005, rejected allegations that the
events of 1915 and the following years in the Ottoman Empire amounted
to "genocide" of the Armenian people.
The Switzerland-Armenia Association filed a criminal complaint against
him. Perinçek was tried by the Lausanne Police Court in March, 2007,
found guilty of racial discrimination, and fined.
Many Armenians argue that denying allegations that the events of 1915
constituted "genocide" should be a crime, just as negating the
Holocaust is. In 2003, the National Council of Switzerland, the
country's parliament, recognized the events of 1915 as "genocide."
Turkey officially refutes this description, saying that although
Armenians died during relocations many Turks also lost their lives in
attacks by Armenian gangs.
A Swiss Appeals Court subsequently confirmed Perinçek's sentence.
Perinçek then appealed to the Federal Tribunal, the highest court in
Switzerland, which also confirmed the sentence.
In 2008, Perinçek appealed to the European Court of Human Rights in
Strasbourg, claiming that the Swiss courts had violated his rights,
including that to freedom of expression. He demanded compensation of
140,000 euros for moral and financial damages, as well as court
expenses.
Now, after a hearing by the court's 17-member Grand Chamber, the court
will begin its deliberations, to be held in private.
Separately, Turkey has called for a joint Armenian-Turkish research
project into the events, making use of the archives in both countries,
to establish the facts.
In April 2014, Turkish President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an, who was prime
minister at the time, offered condolences for the Armenian deaths that
occurred in 1915 -- a first for a Turkish leader. The move was seen as
a significant step toward possible reconciliation.
Jan 28, 2015 | AA | Strasbourg, France
http://national.bgnnews.com/europe-court-has-hearing-on-armenian-allegations-denial-haberi/3108
Jan 28 2015
Europe Court has hearing on Armenian allegations denial
Europe's top human rights court held a hearing Wednesday to decide
whether a Turk who denied Armenian "genocide" allegations should have
his conviction for racial discrimination overturned. No date was set
for a ruling.
The case, referred last June to the European Court of Human Rights,
concerns the case of DoÄ?u Perinçek, a Turkish national and chairman of
the left-wing Turkish Workers' Party. Perinçek was found guilty of
racial discrimination in Switzerland for describing the so-called
"Armenian genocide" as an "international lie."
At the hearing, Amal Alamuddin, a lawyer representing the Armenian
government, said a lower court had not taken into account documents
from 1915, when the events are alleged to have occurred.
Alamuddin also said that, according to a story from that period that
appeared in New York Times, Talaat Pasha had decided to expel the
Christians from Anatolia, the Asian part of what is now Turkey.
Talaat Pasha was a member of a triumvirate that governed the Ottoman
Empire during World War II. He was assassinated in Berlin in 1921 by a
survivor of the Armenian relocation.
"There are no court trials where Talat Pasha was convicted," said
Perinçek at the hearing Wednesday. "As a result of a probe by the
British state, the case was closed as no evidence could be found about
the Armenian issue."
Perinçek called Talaat Pasha a hero of liberty.
The defendant recalled a book written by Armenia's first prime
minister, Ovanes Katchaznouni, that detailed a dialogue between the
prime minister and the pasha.
In the events that led to the present case, Perinçek, at various
conferences in Switzerland in 2005, rejected allegations that the
events of 1915 and the following years in the Ottoman Empire amounted
to "genocide" of the Armenian people.
The Switzerland-Armenia Association filed a criminal complaint against
him. Perinçek was tried by the Lausanne Police Court in March, 2007,
found guilty of racial discrimination, and fined.
Many Armenians argue that denying allegations that the events of 1915
constituted "genocide" should be a crime, just as negating the
Holocaust is. In 2003, the National Council of Switzerland, the
country's parliament, recognized the events of 1915 as "genocide."
Turkey officially refutes this description, saying that although
Armenians died during relocations many Turks also lost their lives in
attacks by Armenian gangs.
A Swiss Appeals Court subsequently confirmed Perinçek's sentence.
Perinçek then appealed to the Federal Tribunal, the highest court in
Switzerland, which also confirmed the sentence.
In 2008, Perinçek appealed to the European Court of Human Rights in
Strasbourg, claiming that the Swiss courts had violated his rights,
including that to freedom of expression. He demanded compensation of
140,000 euros for moral and financial damages, as well as court
expenses.
Now, after a hearing by the court's 17-member Grand Chamber, the court
will begin its deliberations, to be held in private.
Separately, Turkey has called for a joint Armenian-Turkish research
project into the events, making use of the archives in both countries,
to establish the facts.
In April 2014, Turkish President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an, who was prime
minister at the time, offered condolences for the Armenian deaths that
occurred in 1915 -- a first for a Turkish leader. The move was seen as
a significant step toward possible reconciliation.
Jan 28, 2015 | AA | Strasbourg, France
http://national.bgnnews.com/europe-court-has-hearing-on-armenian-allegations-denial-haberi/3108