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PM: Law on genocide has no significance for Turkey (UPDATE)

Türkiye Materials 24 January 2012 14:45 (UTC +04:00)

The details were added (the first version was posted at 14:25)

Azerbaijan, Baku, Jan. 24 / Trend A. Taghiyeva /

The law criminalizing the denial of the "Armenian Genocide" has no significance for Turkey, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was quoted by TRT Haber TV channel as saying today.

"Yesterday, we watched the registered voting," he said. "The law does not make sense."

Erdogan said the law contradicts all principles of European democracy and freedom of speech.

He also stressed that Turkey is closely observing the events.

"Turkey will continue to impose new sanctions against France," Erdogan said.

The French Senate adopted the bill. Some 127 senators voted in favor, while 86 voted against on Jan.23.

The lower house adopted a bill criminalising the denial of the genocide on Dec.22. Some 45 out of 577 French MPs voted with 38 voting for and seven against the adoption of the bill.

The bill demands a year's imprisonment and a fine of 45,000 euro for denying the so-called genocide. In response to this decision, Turkey announced that it has frozen all diplomatic relations with France.

MPs from the French president's Union for Popular Movement (UMP) party proposed the bill aimed at criminalizing the denial of the so-called 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.

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