CDA Candidates Deny Genocide by Turks
By our correspondents

Trouw (Dutch national newspaper)
21-09-06

Two candidates on CDA’s (Christian Democrats) list for the
parliamentary elections in November deny the Armenian Genocide,
while the party believes that Turkey should recognize the genocide.

It concerns two candidates of Turkish descent: Ayhan Tonca (in 35th
place) and Osman Elmaci (56). For a long time, Tonca has called the
genocide a lie. Elmaci recently clarified his views in a letter to the
Parliament. The letter is available on the website of TV-program NOVA,
which explored this issue yesterday.

Elmaci writes that ChristenUnie’s proposal to penalize the denial of
genocide goes against the pillars of freedom of speech. He points
to the fact that there are 300,000 Turks in the Netherlands who do
not believe in the Armenian Genocide of 1915 and sums up the Turkish
arguments.

Tonca is the chairman of the Islamic Foundation in the Netherlands
(ISN), the Dutch chapter of Diyanet, the Turkish Ministry of
Religious Affairs. ISN also oversees most of the Turkish mosques in
the Netherlands. In Turkish circles, people are questioning how Tonca
can function as a representative of the people when he is tied hands
and feet to the Turkish government.

On Elmaci’s website (), there are indications
that he is affiliated with right-winged nationalist Turkish
organizations. Earlier, both Elmaci and Tonca criticized the
proposal of the ChristenUnie in an e-mail discussion with local
Turkish politicians.

CDA’s chairwoman, Marja van Blijsterveldt, responds in a reaction
that she respects Tonca’s views, but that they are not the views of
the fraction, nor of the party.

The Armenian Genocide happened in 1915, when Turkey was allied with
Germany. Turks deported Armenians to Syria when they began to question
their loyalty.