TURKISH PRESIDENT "DEEPLY SAD" OVER FRENCH DECISION, HOPES BILL NOT ENACTED

Anatolia news agency, Turkey
Oct 13 2006

Ankara, 13 October: "President Ahmet Necdet Sezer got deeply sad
over the French National Assembly’s approval of a bill on 12 October
2006 that makes any denial of so-called Armenian genocide a crime,"
said Sermet Atacanli, senior adviser to President Sezer, on Friday
[13 October].

"Mr President hopes that the bill will be received with logic in the
next legislative level and hopes that the bill will not become an
actual law in France," told Atacanli.

Atacanli added that "Mr Sezer wishes that Turkish-French relations
will not get hurt and basic rights of freedom of expression will not
get negatively affected by a French law."