Turkish EU Minister: there was no genocide, arrest me

January 30, 2012 - 11:47 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Egemen Bagis, Turkey’s chief EU negotiator, has publicly denied the fact of the Armenian Genocide after he participated in the World Economic Forum in Davos.

According to Ilhas, in Zurich, Bagis commented on the French Senate’s recently adopted bill criminalizing genocide denial and reminded that Switzerland also passed a similar law several years ago. “I am in Switzerland and I say that there was no genocide. Let them come and arrest me. This decision doesn’t matter to us and I believe that France’s constitutional court will abolish it sooner or later,” Bagis said.

On January 23, the French Senate passed the bill criminalizing the Armenian Genocide denial with 127 votes for and 86 against. To be signed into law within 14 days, the bill will impose 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.