Marseille Armenians urge criminal punishment for Armenian Genocide denial

March 13, 2011 - 16:55 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenians of the French city of Marseille took to the streets to call on the Senate to adopt the bill envisaging criminal punishment for the Armenian Genocide denial.

The rally organized by the Coordination Council of Armenian Organizations in France (CCAF) brought together French Senators, who called on their colleagues to adopt the bill criminalizing the denial of the first Genocide of the 20th century.

According to Nouvelles d'Arménie, around 500 people took part in the event.

It’s should be noted that a similar action initiated by the CCAF took place in Paris on March 12, with participation of world famous singer, Armenia’s ambassador to Switzerland Charles Aznavour.

The Armenian Genocide

The Armenian Genocide (1915-23) was the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I. It was characterized by massacres and deportations, involving forced marches under conditions designed to lead to the death of the deportees, with the total number of deaths reaching 1.5 million.

The majority of Armenian Diaspora communities were formed by the Genocide survivors.

Present-day Turkey denies the fact of the Armenian Genocide, justifying the atrocities as “deportation to secure Armenians”. Only a few Turkish intellectuals, including Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk and scholar Taner Akcam, speak openly about the necessity to recognize this crime against humanity.

The Armenian Genocide was recognized by Uruguay, Russia, France, Lithuania, Italy, 45 U.S. states, Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon, Argentina, Belgium, Austria, Wales, Switzerland, Canada, Poland, Venezuela, Chile, Bolivia, the Vatican, Luxembourg, Brazil, Germany, the Netherlands, Paraguay, Sweden, Venezuela, Slovakia, Syria, Vatican, as well as the European Parliament and the World Council of Churches.