TURKISH PARLIAMENT DELEGATION TO TRAVEL TO FRANCE OVER ARMENIAN BILL
Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
May 9 2006
ANKARA – Turkish Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc said on Sunday that
a Turkish delegation of four parliamentarians is planning to travel
to France today. Speaking to reporters, Arinc, currently paying an
official visit to Sweden, stated that France’s Parliament is set to
debate a bill concerning the so-called Armenian ‘genocide’ on May 18,
adding that the Turkish parliamentarians will hold a series of talks
with their France counterparts to convince them not to pass the bill.
Regarding the issue, Arinc also sent a message to France Parliament
Speaker Jean-Louis Debre last month.
Turkey does not accept the Armenian accusations about the 1915
Events. Both sides accuse each other of committing genocide. Turkish
historians argue that more than 520,000 Muslim Ottomans were massacred
by the Armenian gangs. Thosands of Armenians were also killed in the
communal clashes during the First Worl War.
France on the other hand does not recognise the Algerian genocide.
The Algerians blame French Government as ‘denier’. However the French
politicians are very keen on recognising the Armenian allegations
as truth.