LAGENDIJK: GUL SEEMS INSULTED BY CLAIMS THAT HE COULD HAVE ARMENIAN MOTHER

PanARMENIAN.Net
25.12.2008 17:00 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The co-chairman of the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary
Committee, Joost Lagendijk said the CHP should be embarrassed about
the remarks by Cinan Aritman.

"No political party should be proud of having such deputies. These
remarks are scandalous, and one should be ashamed of making such
statements. I can fully understand the huge reaction shown to
Ms. Aritman. Each political party should be ashamed of such statements
and in particular the CHP, of course. I think the best thing for [CHP
leader Deniz] Baykal would be to clearly state that Aritman’s tone
was not the party line and instead give his reaction to the debate,"
Lagendijk said.

However, Lagendijk also criticized a complaint filed by President Gul
against Aritman. "I am not interested at all in whether Gul’s mother is
of Armenian origin or not. If he would have stated that he is Muslim
and Turkish and has no Armenian blood and added that what if he had
an Armenian mother, it would be nice, but I understand it would be
too strong for him. Having an Armenian mother is not a shame. Taking
her to court would not be my first reaction. I am afraid it could
imply that he felt insulted by the claims that he could have had an
Armenian mother," he said, Today’s Zaman reports.

The dispute between a main opposition deputy and President Abdullah
Gul over the latter’s ethnic origin took Wednesday on another dimension
Wednesday with the request of a DNA test from Gul to prove his ethnic
background.

Canan Aritman, the Izmir deputy of the Republican People’s Party,
or CHP, said Gul had Armenian roots, which is why he has not
openly rejected the apology campaign carried out by a group of
intellectuals. In a counter-statement Gul said his family was 100
percent Muslim and Turk and filed a lawsuit against Aritman.