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ANKARA 'CONCERNED' OVER EUROPEAN INITIATIVE TO COMBAT RACISM AND XENOPHOBIA
PanARMENIAN.Net
11.04.2007 16:32 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkey has expressed 'concerns' over a new German
initiative to combat racism and xenophobia with a template European
law that could spread moves in France and elsewhere to criminalize
any denial of the Armenian Genocide.
The draft framework, essentially a recommended legal blueprint for
European Union governments to follow, is very likely to serve as
a recipe for other countries to follow the example of a French vote
last October when a bill criminalizing denial of the Armenian Genocide
was endorsed, the Turkish Daily News reports.
This is a very wrong draft, which excludes a UN convention and brushes
aside freedom of expression and academic studies, government spokesman
Cemil Cicek told reporters after a Cabinet meeting late on Monday.
The draft negotiating framework penalizing the denial of genocide
and sentencing deniers up to three year in prison will appear on the
agenda between April 18 and 19 under the German presidency of the
European Union, Cicek said.
He said Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul had conveyed Turkish concerns
over the draft to Germany during a visit last week, adding that Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan would bring the issue onto the agenda
when he had talks with German officials during a planned visit to
Germany over the weekend.
PanARMENIAN.Net
11.04.2007 16:32 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkey has expressed 'concerns' over a new German
initiative to combat racism and xenophobia with a template European
law that could spread moves in France and elsewhere to criminalize
any denial of the Armenian Genocide.
The draft framework, essentially a recommended legal blueprint for
European Union governments to follow, is very likely to serve as
a recipe for other countries to follow the example of a French vote
last October when a bill criminalizing denial of the Armenian Genocide
was endorsed, the Turkish Daily News reports.
This is a very wrong draft, which excludes a UN convention and brushes
aside freedom of expression and academic studies, government spokesman
Cemil Cicek told reporters after a Cabinet meeting late on Monday.
The draft negotiating framework penalizing the denial of genocide
and sentencing deniers up to three year in prison will appear on the
agenda between April 18 and 19 under the German presidency of the
European Union, Cicek said.
He said Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul had conveyed Turkish concerns
over the draft to Germany during a visit last week, adding that Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan would bring the issue onto the agenda
when he had talks with German officials during a planned visit to
Germany over the weekend.