Hürriyet, Turkey
Oct 13 2006

French Parliament deaf to advance warnings

Yesterday’s newspapers in France were filled with warnings of the
result of an approval vote in the Parliament for the so-called
"genocide denial" bill. EU Commissioner for Expansion, Olli Rehn, had
written a letter printed in the "Liberation" newspaper warning "don’t
kill off dialogue with Turkey."

In the end though, it appeared that the members of the French
Parliament had blocked their ears to these warnings. Following the
vote, which overwhelming approved the controversial bill, the EU
Commission issued clear criticisms of France.

Speaking after the vote, spokesperson for the EU Commission on
Expansion, Khristina Nagy, said "Unfortunately, this decision will
make EU harmonizing reforms in Turkey more difficult. And if the
approved bill goes into implementation, it will mean a deadend for
Armenian-Turkish relations."

Olli Rehn: This bill puts millions of Turks into position of being
suspect

In a letter to the "Liberation" newspaper, EU Commissioner Olli Rehn
warned "This bill, with its historical opinion it is trying to
impose, puts millions of Turks and their country into the position of
being suspect."

European Parliament MP Duff: Dark day for freedom in France

Another voice condemning the French vote came from European
Parliament member Andrew Duff, who said "The French Parliament has
rejected freedom of thought and expression. It is a dark day in
France for freedom." Duff added "How can France insist to Turkey that
it develop its own freedoms and laws when it finds itself in the
exact opposite situation?"

Le Figaro warns: Don’t make mistake

And finally, yesterday’s Le Figaro printed a warning yesterday to the
members of the French Parliament not to "make a mistake." Calling the
"genocide denial" bill an "opportunistic" initiative, Le Figaro urged
MPs not to push France into a situation of absurdity with an approval
vote.