CALL TO THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE

ArmRadio.am
19.04.2007 16:06

The European Armenian Federation urges the Ministers of Justice of the
EU member-States not to surrender to the pressure exerted by Turkey in
order to exclude the negation of the Armenian genocide from the scope
of the Framework decision aiming at penalizing denial. In this regard,
the Federation sent a mail to the EU German presidency denouncing the
"immoral and inappropriate interference" of Turkey. It also calls
upon the European policy-makers not to " let a hateful and genocidal
ideology from abroad destroy all that we have built."

According to the media, Ankara exerted heavy pressures on various
member-States, especially on the German presidency, to avoid the
Framework decision " against racism and xenophobia" hindering its
denial propaganda in Europe.

Various diplomats from the Council would have asserted that the text
actually exclude this denial, to comply with the Turkish will. However,
the draft law doesn ‘t contain as such this provision.

"Actually, this opinion is clearly led by a very biased political
interpretation of a juridical text which basically aims to protect
all the European citizens. However, it would be morally abject that
the EU gives such a support to Ankara’s policy aiming at downgrading
Europeans with Armenian descent into second-class citizens, the only
ones to be out of this legal protection," stated Laurent Leylekian,
the executive director of the European Armenian Federation.

The Federation recalls that Turkey organized several demonstrations
in Europe to incite hatred against Armenians through the genocide
denial. Thanks to the massive police presence, these demonstrations
did not degenerate into actual anti-Armenian violence.

"The ultimate goal of Ankara is that – in Europe as in Turkey –
all Human beings are born equal in dignity and rights but the
Armenians. Facing to this infamy, Europe must remain inflexible and
must secure our penal legislation against the denial-based hatred,"
concluded Leylekian.