Radio Liberty. Czech Rep.
Oct 13 2006
Armenian Studens Salute France Over Genocide Bill
By Irina Hovannisian
Hundreds of students rallied outside the French embassy in Yerevan
Friday to thank France’s parliament for passing a bill that would
make it an offence punishable by jail to deny that Armenians suffered
a genocide at the hands of Ottoman Turks.
Chanting `Long live France!’ and waving French and Armenian flags,
they marched through the city center in two separate demonstrations
organized by the student organizations of the Armenian Revolutionary
Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) and another youth organizations.
`We express our sincere gratitude to our French friends and welcome
this historic step,’ an organizer of the first rally representing the
Social Democratic Hnchakian Party said, reading out a petition
outside the embassy building in central Yerevan.
`We are here to express our joy at the adoption of this law and hope
that sooner or later such a bill will be adopted in Turkey,’ said one
of the participants.
`That horrible crime must be accepted by all means,’ agreed another,
referring to the 1915-1918 mass killings and deportations of
Armenians in the Ottoman Empire.
France is one of about two dozen countries that have officially
recognized the slaughter of an estimated 1.5 Armenians as genocide.
Ignoring vehement protests from the Turkey, the lower of house of its
parliament went farther and adopted legislation on Thursday that
establishes a one-year prison term and 45,000 euro ($56,570) fine for
anyone denying the genocide. Armenia promptly welcomed the move as a
`natural reaction to the intensive, aggressive and official denial of
the Armenian Genocide by the Turkish state.’
`France recognized the fact of the Armenian genocide long ago,’ Henry
Cuny, the French ambassador to Armenia, said, addressing the jubilant
students outside his mission.
Cuny made no direct mention of the bill, which his government did not
support, urging young Armenians instead to strive to improve `your
relations with your neighbor Turkey.’ `I think that for any country
having good relations with a good neighbor is very important,’ he
said, adding that Turkey should reopen its border with Armenia and
`embrace values’ espoused by the European Union.
Visiting Yerevan earlier this month, French President Jacques Chirac
indicated that Turkey has to recognize the Armenian genocide if it
wants to join the EU. The statement was echoed by other top French
politicians. EU officials insist, however, that genocide recognition
is not a precondition for Ankara’s entry to the bloc.