06 05 03 - Turkey Irritated

After the various demonstrations negationnists orchestrated by Ankara (Lausanne, Berlin, Lyon, New York...), and the threats of commercial boycott against Canada, because its Prime Minister recognized the Armenian Genocide officially, the Turkish government must now deal with the French private bill penalizing the negation of this Genocide which will be submitted to the French Parliament on May 18.

Threats of Abdulah Gül against France
Thus, at the time of the meeting of the Ministers for the businesses érangères at the top of NATO, this week in Bulgaria, the chief of the Turkish diplomacy did not take four ways to express his dissatisfaction to the face of his French counterpart, Philippe Douste-Blazy. Abdulah Gül would have clearly required that the French authorities make stopping to the socialist bill suggestion which envisages a sorrow of imprisonment and 45000 Euros of fine for those which denies the reality of the Armenian genocide. The Turkish Foreign Minister would then have asked Philippe Douste Blazy: "if I come to France and that I declare that there no was Armenian genocide, you will imprison me ? If our president or our Prime Minister says the same thing, you will also imprison it ? And what will be done with all the diplomats Turkish who at the time of their official stays in France deny the genocide in the press, you also will throw them in prison?", chief of the Turkish diplomacy added, conclusive that if the bills suggestion are adopted, that will create problems in the political and economic relations between France and Turkey.

*The president of the Large National Assembly of Turkey, Bülent ARINC, addressed a letter, April 17, with his French counterpart, Jean-Louis Debre, to inform it consequences which the adoption of this proposal could have aiming at punishing the negation of the "alleged Armenian genocide". Mr. ARINC estimates that that "would constitute an obstacle with work of the academics and scientists wishing to explore this subject" and "would condemn the idea put forward to the most level than the history cannot be written by the politicians". (Le Monde *).

These declarations are at the moment or the chief of the "Party of the workers", Turkish Dogu Perinçek, is accused, in Lausanne (Swiitzerland) by the examining magistrate for racial discrimination. In July 2005, on the occasion of the 82th anniversary of the Treaty of Lausanne, he had in particular declared that the Armenian genocide of 1915 was a "international lie". He risks six months of prison.

During this time... in France
Patrick Devedjian, close council of the president of UMP (Union for a Popular Movement), Nicolas Sarkozy, denounces these pressures "the negationnists pursue the goal of the genocide, supports the deputy. The events of Lyon led me, in spite of my reserves of lawyer, to rejoin me with the project. It is the condition of civil peace in France. I differently fear an evolution towards Community confrontations." From now on, Mr. Devedjian pleads for a "consensual" text which all the parties could vote.

In Germany
10 000 German of Turkish origin signed a petition asking the Turkish National Assembly to recognize the Armenian Genocide.

And in Turkey
Turkish association of the rights of man marked the 91st commemoration of the Armenian genocide by a declaration in front of the media Turkish and the correspondents of the international press in Istanbul, denouncing the attitude of the authorities of Ankara vis-a-vis to this question. Remarks which until now were never made publicly on the Turkish ground.
Today, us, as defenders of the humans right, we want to address ourselves to all the Armenians of Turkey and the whole world to say to them: "we want to share the sorrow which is in your hearts and to incline us in memory of your disappeared, they are also our late."

Jean Eckian
www.inhomage.com

V.V