Details added (the first version was published at 15:31)
Azerbaijan, Baku, Jan.24 /Trend M.Aliyev/
The French Senate adopted the law criminalizing the denial of the so-called "Armenian genocide". It made the unfounded action, deputy chairman and executive secretary of the ruling New Azerbaijan party Ali Ahmadov told Trend today.
"In the Middle Ages people were executed, if they did not believe in God," he said. "The Bolsheviks punished those who believe in God. But neither the courts of the inquisition increase the number of believers, nor persecution of Bolsheviks increase the number of atheists. Thus, neither laws nor restrictions can change people's belief. It is ridiculous to adopt a law aimed at changing people's belief in the modern world, particularly in Europe."
This law is completely contrary to the principles of human rights and freedom of speech and will have no positive result, he said.
He said that by adopting this law, France made great injustice, because it is an attempt to influence people's opinions.
The adoption of the law will strengthen Azerbaijan's distrust to France's activity in the Minsk group.
"France is one of the co-chairing countries of the Minsk Group to resolve the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh," he said. "Now every Azerbaijani citizen has a question: may a country, adopting such an unjust law, have a fair position in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict? France has demonstrated its pro-Armenian position by adopting the law and acts as a defender of Armenian interests in Europe. In this case, whether France may be fair in resolving the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia in this case?"
France betrayed its mediator mission in the Minsk Group by adopting the law.
"The mediator must be neutral and must not show special attitude to any of the parties to the conflict," he said. "France openly implements the mission of the Armenian lobbyist. So it has betrayed its mediator mission in the Minsk Group. Thus, it loses the moral right to be a mediator in Minsk Group."
The French Senate which is the Upper House of parliament adopted the bill. Some 127 senators voted in favour, while 86 were against on Jan.23. The Lower Chamber of the French Parliament adopted a bill criminalising the denial of the so-called "Armenian genocide" earlier on Dec 22, 2011.
Some 45 out of 577 French MPs participated in the voting, while 38 voted for and seven against the adoption of the bill.
The bill demands about a year's imprisonment and a 45,000 euro fine for denial of the so-called "Armenian genocide".
MPs from the French President's Union for Popular Movement (UMP) party which has the parliamentary majority, proposed the bill which aims at criminalising denial of the so-called "Armenian genocide" to the legislative committee of the National Assembly in early December.
Armenia and the Armenian lobby claim that the predecessor of the Turkey - Ottoman Empire had committed the 1915 genocide against the Armenians living in Anadolu, and achieved recognition of the "Armenian Genocide" by the parliaments of several countries.