Valérie Boyer pledges to continue struggle for Genocide bill adoption

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenians in Marseille stand ready to vote for French parliamentary candidate Valérie Boyer, member of the Union for a Popular Movement.

During meeting with Armenian community in the framework of her election campaign, the author of the bill criminalizing the Armenian Genocide denial voiced intention to continue activity aimed at adoption of the draft law.

“I promise not to weaken efforts. We will once again ask for a similar bill to be submitted to the parliament,” she said.

The meeting further featured screening of the film about the Genocide memories.

On January 23, the French Senate passed the bill criminalizing the Armenian Genocide. The bill envisaged imposing a 45,000 euro fine and a year in prison for anyone in France who denies this crime against humanity committed by the Ottoman Empire.

Later, the French Constitutional Council ruled that a bill adopted by the French Senate making it a crime to deny the Armenian Genocide was anti-constitutional.

In a statement the Council said the bill adopted by parliament on January 23 represented an “unconstitutional breach of the practice of freedom of expression and communication.” Turkey reacted furiously when the Senate approved the law. Ankara halted political and military cooperation with France and was threatening to cut off economic and cultural ties if the law took effect.

Immediately after French Constitutional Council ruling, the then President Nicolas Sarkozy instructed the government to submit a new draft law punishing the denial of the Armenian Genocide.