July 11, 2005 - 09:17 AMT
URUGUAY URGED EU TO DENY TURKISH MEMBERSHIP UNLESS IT RECOGNIZES ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
A campaign of signature collection under a petition asking the European Union to deny Turkey's membership unless it acknowledges the Armenian genocide, launched by Lilian Kechijian, an Armenian member of Uruguay parliament, is gathering momentum. The campaign is supported by Armenian Cause office, Armenia youth union and many other local Armenian organizations. The petition is being co-signed not only by Armenians but also Uruguayans. On July 8 Lillian Kechijian met with activists of Armenian organizations to sum up what they had done to this end. The meeting decided to make a broader use of mass media to expand the campaign. In an interview with a local Armenian radio, Lilian Kechijian said she was happy that the petition was being signed not only by ordinary citizens, but also by government and parliament members including the country's vice-president.