  Bulgarian parliament kills Armenian Genocide resolution January 11, 2012 - 17:08 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The latest attempt by Bulgarian ultra-nationalist party Ataka to ask the country’s parliament to recognise the Armenian Genocide was defeated in the House on January 11, 2012, The Sofia Echo reported. The municipalities of a number of Bulgarian cities, among them Plovdiv, Varna, Bourgas and Stara Zagora, have approved resolutions recognising the Armenian Genocide but over the years, similar resolutions in parliament have failed. This was the case on January 11, as the National Assembly – Bulgaria’s unicameral legislature – resumed business for the New Year. Volen Siderov, leader of Ataka, a party whose platform includes an overall anti-Turkish stance against the background of the centuries of Ottoman rule of Bulgaria, said that it was natural for a "patriotic party" such as his to recognise the Armenian Genocide. "To hide certain aspects of history because they are not good for you as a country is, to me, demagogy," Siderov said. He said that Ataka’s resolution was not an attempt to politicise the issue or to tread into the field of natural history, but was a proposal based on reason, the necessity to recognise unpleasant moments in history. The Movement for Rights and Freedoms, a minority party led and supported in the main by Bulgarians of Turkish ethnicity, objected strongly to parliament being asked to deal with the issue. ”It was not the function of parliament to decide historical truth,” senior MRF MP Lyutvi Mestan said. “The draft resolution was intended to force a mandatory way of thinking.”   Top stories The EU does not intend to conduct military exercises with Armenia, Lead Spokesperson for EU Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Peter Stano says. A telephone conversation between Putin and Pashinyan before the CSTO summit is not planned, Peskov says. London’s Armenian community has been left feeling “under attack” after the city’s Genocide monument was vandalised. The United States believes there should be an international mission to provide transparency.   Partner news |  Topic Latest news Armenia: Opposition activist transferred to Investigative Committee  Activist Samvel Vardanyan has been accused of insulting the lawmaker Hakob Aslanyan from the ruling Civil Contract party.Russia confirms start of withdrawal of peacekeepers from Karabakh The Kremlin has confirmed reports about the start of the withdrawal of Russian peacekeeping forces in Karabakh.France recalls its ambassador to Azerbaijan France on April 16 said it had recalled for consultations the French ambassador to Azerbaijan.Protesters rally as Georgia debates 'foreign agent' bill Georgian critics label the bill "the Russian law", comparing it to legislation used by the Kremlin to crack down on dissent. |
