BULGARIAN PARLIAMENT SPEAKER’S INITIATIVE TO RESPECT MEMORY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE VICTIMS WITH ONE-MINUTE SILENCE MAKE DEPUTIES OF TURKISH ORIGIN INDIGNANT

Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
Apr 26 2007

SOFIA, APRIL 26, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. At the proposal of
Bulgarian Parliament Speaker Georgi Pinski, deputies stood up in honour
of memory of the Armenian Genocide victims with one-minute silence. But
deputies of the Rights and Freedoms Movement party in the rows of which
Turks make majority, did not welcome that step and stating that "The
history does not belong to parliamentarians, let historians speak,"
left the parliament conference-hall, as a sign of protest.

According to Milliyet, deputies of the ATAKA party arresting one’s
attention during that period of time with its racist views spoke
from the parliament tribune about the genocide. And party Chairman
Volen Siderov demanded that the Parliament officially recognizes the
Armenian Genocide without losing time.

In some time, the deputies, left the parliament conference-hall,
returned after what discussions started among them and opposing
deputies. The opposing ones this time left the parliament
conference-hall, in this way expressing their protest against the
just returned deputies.

Lutfu Mestan, a deputy from the Rights and Freedoms Movement party,
reminding that a dialogue was promoted between Turkey and Armenia to
study insistences of the genocide, mentioned that such an initiative
of the Bulgarian parliament will greatly harm that dialogue.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress