Turkish lawmaker sends letter to French counterparts regarding resolution

ANKARA/PARIS (A.A) - The head of Turkey-European Union (EU) Joint Parliament Commission sent on Tuesday a letter to his French counterparts about a French resolution criminalizing denial of Armenian allegations regarding the incidents of 1915. Afif Demirkiran sent the letter to 74 members of the European Parliament of French origin to prevent adoption of the resolution in France. In his letter, Demirkiran said that with the adoption of the resolution, an issue that should be dealt with historians, jurists and intellectuals would turn into a penal sanction. "Enactment of the resolution will hamper efforts to normalize Turkish-Armenian relations," Demirkiran said. Demirkiran expressed concern over the resolution, and said Turkey believed that it would be more easier if historians investigated the issue and shared the results of their investigation freely. "It is hard to understand in regard to French history and culture how France, which has adopted the principle in 1789 that nobody could be punished for his/her opinion and belief, turn this issue into a crime," Demirkiran said. Demirkiran said adoption of the resolution by the French parliament would not serve Turkish-French people's interests, and expressed thought that multilateral cooperation between Turkey and France should not be sacrified to internal politics of France. "In this context, I sincerely would like to believe that you will exert every effort to prevent adoption of the resolution by the French parliament," Demirkiran also said. Moreover, Turkish associations in France will stage a demonstration in front of the French Parliament on Thursday just before the general assembly votes the resolution.  A French parliamentary commission adopted the mentioned resolution on December 7. The resolution will be voted at the general assembly on December 22. It envisages "one-year prison term and 45,000 Euro fine for those who deny genocide recognized by French laws."