Month: October 2006

Today, Azerbaijan
Oct 13 2006

French Ambassador: "Senators are more far-sighted than MPs"

13 October 2006 [16:25] – Today.Az

"I regret that France Parliament adopted the law that would make it a
crime to deny false Armenian genocide by first reading," Bernard
Amaudric du Chaffaut, French Ambassador to Azerbaijan told
journalists.

He said the decision triggered serious public reaction, APA reports.

"The decision needs to be approved at some stages. I hope the Senate
will not approve this decision. French senators are more far-sighted
than parliamentarians. Even if the Senate approves it, the
Constitutional Court will determine whether the decision contradicts
to the constitution or not, because there is an item on freedom of
thinking in France constitution. The president may be the last
obstacle in the adoption of the law. A president having no veto can
refuse to sign the law. I hope the adoption of the law will be
postponed till March 2007, the parliamentary elections in France,
because, Armenian electors have great influence on France Socialist
Party," he said.

The Ambassador also said that he got acquainted with the Azerbaijan
Foreign Ministry’s position on the decision. He said this law will
damage France-Turkey and France-Azerbaijan relations.

"When France Parliament recognized false Armenian genocide the
relations between France and Turkey were not damaged. The other
positive point of it was that Turkish and Armenian historians agreed
to probe into historical events. Armenians organized strong Diaspora
in France and take an active part in political processes. I hope
Azerbaijan and Turkey will express their positions until the decision
is passed," Mr.Chaffaut said.

Ambassador also touched upon France President’s visit to Azerbaijan
and said that Jacques Chirac is not expected to postpone his visit.

URL:

Regnum, Russia
Oct 13 2006

Expert: Ankara’s next step will be charging the US with the genocide
of Indians in North America

As you may know, after the visit of French President Jacques Chirac
to Armenia and his statement during a press-conference in Yerevan
that the French Parliament was drafting a bill on criminal
responsibility for denying the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923, they
in Turkey and Azerbaijan have launched a large-scale anti-French
campaign. Expert of the Caucasus analytical center Sergey Shakaryants
comments on the matter.

He says that the situation when Turkish politicians are charging
France with `genocide in Algeria’ is more like the childish `You are
fool yourself!’ style than an attitude of conscious political or
public figures to a serious problem. `Instead of recognizing or
producing real facts and documents to disprove the Armenian Genocide
perpetrated in Western Armenia and other parts of the former Ottoman
Empire, the Turks are trying to charge with genocide the countries
who have taken steps to recognize and condemn the crime committed by
Turkish chauvinists. In such a case, the Turks will have no end of
work to do – for example, their next step may be charging with a
genocide of North American Indians almost all the US states whose
national assemblies have passed resolutions recognizing and
condemning the Armenian Genocide.’

`True, Turkey will hardly dare to be as blackmailing to even one US
state as it is now to France. Old Continent is a different story –
they are burdened with the necessity of negotiating EU membership
with Ankara and are absolutely at a loss what to do with the problem
of yearly swelling Muslim and Turkish gastarbeiter communities in
almost all European states,’ says Shakaryants.

He believes that Azerbaijan’s solidarity with Turkey in the matter
comes more from self-interest than barely from commitment to the
recent Azeri-Turkish agreements on mutual support in `fighting the
Armenian lobby’ worldwide. `This can be seen in the recent behavior
of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Foreign Minister Elmar
Mammadyarov, who have begun to actively argue for the deployment of
some `international peacekeepers’ in the Karabakh-Azerbaijani
conflict zone. Their point is that, since the OSCE MG states have,
allegedly, no right to provide their military contingents for such
`peacekeeping,’ they, in tandem with Ankara, will succeed in `pushing
through’ the scenario of Turkish peacekeeping presence, like was the
case in Lebanon,’ says Shakaryants.

`However, the attempts of Turkey and Azerbaijan to blackmail the
international community and Armenia with NKR are a priori doomed to
failure. It was not without purpose that Turkey was debarred from any
active part in the OSCE MG – Yerevan and Stepanakert are unanimous
that Turkey, who, de facto, took part in the war (to remind, any form
of blockade by any country, in fact, even by the UN, is considered to
be a form of waging or partaking a war) had and has absolutely no
right to take part in the affairs of the South Caucasus, not
mentioning the Karabakh peace process. The Armenian Genocide issue
will always be `a sword of Damocles’ for Ankara if it actually wants
to join United Europe – at least, because there are still many
descendants of Armenian Genocide victims living in many European
countries,’ says Shakaryants.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Spiegel Online, Germany
Oct 13 2006

French Law Outrages Turks
By Jürgen Gottschlich in Istanbul

French lawmakers have voted to make it a crime to deny that the mass
killings of Armenians that occurred in Turkey during World War I
amounted to genocide. The decision has caused outrage among both
politicians and critical intellectuals in Turkey. Now France faces
economic retaliation from Ankara.

"There is a century-long friendship between Turkey and France. Now,
with this decision, France is destroying the basis of that
friendship," says Onur Oymen, a Turkish parliamentarian and member of
the opposition Social Democrats. Oymen, who was visibly shaken as he
spoke, is one of three Turkish members of parliament who travelled to
Paris in response to French lawmakers debating a bill on the mass
killings of Armenians that occurred in Turkey during World War I.

Turkey didn’t give up hope until the very last moment that lawmakers
in the lower house of the French parliament would vote against the
bill, which criminalizes statements denying that Turkish mass
killings of Armenians during World War I constitute genocide. The
bill passed by 106 votes to 19, despite the fact that the government
of French President Jacques Chirac opposed it. Many lawmakers simply
chose not to attend the session during which the vote took place.

Now, intense outrage is expected to erupt on Turkish streets.
Followers of the far-right National Movement Party (MHP) have already
staged demonstrations during the past days, and popular outrage at
France is expected to peak during the days to come. Most Turks view
the bill as just the latest humiliation from France — a symbolic
rejection of Turkey’s bid for membership in the European Union.

A broad majority of people in the West believe the mass killings of
Armenians that occurred in Turkey during the decline of the Ottoman
Empire fit the definition of genocide. But criminalizing the opposing
viewpoint is unlikely to change the minds of Turks who feel their
country is being unjustly accused.

Forum

Is Europe treating Turkey unfairly?
Discuss the issue with other SPIEGEL ONLINE readers!

58 Posts,
Latest Post: 07/14
By Conrad J. Boogeyman Prior to the French vote, Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that "a lie is still a lie, even
if another parliament decides otherwise." Of course, he made that
statement with support from a majority of the Turkish population. At
the same time, Erdogan also sought to assuage tensions between France
and Turkey, explicitly rejecting a proposal from his governing
faction to respond to Paris by declaring French war crimes in Algeria
to be a case of genocide. But Turkey has officially said it will
respond to the French law by means of economic retaliation.

The Turkish government has announced it will call off a
French-Turkish business deal involving military technology, in
addition to excluding French companies from the bidding process for
construction of a planned nuclear reactor in Turkey. Political
parties, patriotic groups and other associations will also demand a
boycott of French products — a move that will likely have even more
serious effects on French-Turkish economic relations. If the boycott
gains traction, French companies stand to lose a great deal. For
example, car-maker Renault has a major plant near Istanbul. Turkey is
also an important market for the French supermarket chain Carrefour.
In the run-up to the vote, Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul
alluded to France’s economic dependence on Turkey. "If this bill is
passed, Turkey will not lose anything," he said, "but France will
lose Turkey."

Turkish intellectuals reject French decision

But it’s the democratic forces that have been fighting to defend
freedom of expression in Turkey for years who have been most damaged
by the bill. These groups have long tried to raise public awareness
of the mass killings of Armenians, and the fact that freedom of
expression will now be curbed in France creates a paradoxical
situation for these groups. "How are we supposed to argue against
laws that prohibit us from talking about genocide, when France is now
doing exactly the same, just the other way round?" asks Hrant Dink,
one of Istanbul’s most prominent Armenian intellectuals. "It’s
completely irrational."

Dink is editor-in-chief of the Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos, which
has tried in recent years to promote a public debate on Turkish
crimes against the Armenians. Along with other Turkish and
Turkish-Armenian intellectuals, Dink organized a conference on the
Armenian question in Istanbul last year. It was the first time that
the official version of Turkish history was publicly debated in
Turkey. "If this law goes into effect, I’ll be the first to travel to
Paris to violate it," says Dink.

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He is unlikely to be the only one. Take former Maoist Dogu Perincek,
now the leader of a nationalist sect, who may prove unable to resist
the opportunity to stir up trouble in France. Last year in Berlin, he
organized a demonstration to mobilize Germans against the "genocide
lie." He has also already been arrested in Switzerland, where a law
similar to that voted through in France has already been in effect
for some time. The arrest was a propaganda coup for Perincek, and
Swiss Justice Minister Christoph Blocher confessed during a visit to
Turkey two weeks ago that the law has been a major headache for the
country.

Additionally, the Armenian minority population in Turkey is expecting
trouble. The Armenian patriarch in Istanbul, Mesrop Mutafyan, says
the French law will have a detrimental effect on attempts to
establish a dialogue and a sense of mutual understanding between
Armenians and Turks. In recent years, Armenians have been viewed more
positively than they used to be, and the same has been true for
Turkey’s other Christian minority, the Greeks — especially in
Istanbul. But the French vote could now prove to be a setback for
these minority groups.

Relations between Turkey and the neighboring state of Armenia may
also be negatively affected. The informal talks initiated between the
two countries last year will probably be discontinued. The talks
represent an attempt to explore the possibilities for normalizing
Turkish-Armenian relations, if only at a purely bureaucratic level.
Turkish nationalists are already demanding that the roughly 70,000
Armenians who work illegally in Turkey — and who have until now been
quietly tolerated by the government in Ankara — be expelled.

,1518,44242 2,00.html

Zaman Online, Turkey
Oct 13 2006

Turkish Businessmen Boycott French Companies
By Isa Sezen, Istanbul
Friday, October 13, 2006
zaman.com

The passing of the controversial Armenian genocide denial bill in the
French parliament has prompted strong reactions in Turkish business
circles.

Several businessmen announced they would suspend business
partnerships with French companies.

However, no reaction came from Turkey’s Army Pension Fund (OYAK),
which is a partner with French giants in the steel, automotive and
insurance industries.

Associations Also Call for Boycott

Omer Bolat, chairman of the Independent Industrialists and
Businessmen’s Association (MUSIAD), said the law penalizing the
denial of the alleged Armenian genocide passed by the French
parliament aimed at obstructing Turkey’s accession to the European
Union and called for the commercial boycott against France to be a
long-term and collective one.

MUSIAD called its members to stop commercial relationships with
French companies.

Erhan Ozmen, the chairman of Turkish Young Businessmen Confederation,
thinks the passing of the law will have permanent effects on the
relationship between the two countries.

However, Ozmen said boycotts and embargos would damage Turkey as much
as France, and added that the $5 million French capital in Turkey
should not be forgotten.

The Economic Development Foundation also thinks France will correct
its `mistake.’

Milsoft, a leading software company in Turkey’s defense industry,
decided not to join the Euronaval 2006, an international fair on
defense, to be held in Paris in the upcoming weeks.

Two Turkish companies applied for participation in Euronaval, one of
the world’s leading naval armament fairs.

However, Yonca-Onuk, a comopany well-known for its Kaan-class
fast-patrol boats, is joining the fair.

`We must show a joint reaction against this unlucky and biased
decision. Therefore, we decided not to join the fair,’ Milsoft
Marketing Director Cem Koc said.

Yonca-Onuk’s boss Ekber Onuk does not agree with Koc.

`We have been taking part in this fair for the last four or five
years. There will be a gap unless we join it this year. This gap in
the defense industry will negatively affect our company and our
country. We should be there for the Turkish defense industry,’ Onuk
said.

Currently in Brussels, Turkish State Minister Ali Babacan said, `As
Turkey supports freedom of thought and expression, France’s decision
to restrict the freedom of thought is contrary to the European
Union’s basic values.’

Babacan added that the decision made by the French parliament did not
represent the majority of France. `We will continue with the reform
process in the same way. We will take steps to set a good example for
our own people, for the rest of the EU member countries and for
neighboring states.’

As OYAK keeps silent on the law penalizing the denial of the alleged
Armenian genocide, several Turkish businessmen are withdrawing their
orders from France.

Agaoglu Insaat, a leading company in the construction industry,
cancelled its agreement with the French company Carrefour to open a
supermarket in its MyCountry project in Cekmekoy Istanbul.

Businessman Turgay Ciner, owner of Sabah Daily and channel ATV,
suspended the order of an airplane from France as a reaction against
the genocide bill.

Clup Irem Tour owner Saadettin Ulubay suspended a helicopter order
from a French company.

Ulubay said they had concerns about the cancellation of reservation
in tours to France during the Ramadan holiday.

Some French companies operating in Turkey include Total, Elf,
Carrefour, Danone, Tefal, Michelin, Renault, Peugeot, Citroen,
Lacoste, L’Oreal, Lancome, Christian Dior, Avon, Onduline, Lafarge,
Chryso, Air France, BIC, Cartier, Sheaffer, Le coq sportif, Alcatel,
AXA, Gunes Insurance, Basak Insurance, Basak Emeklilik Societe
General Bank, Turkish Economy Bank, Sanofi and Servier.

TUSIAD: Let us Reply with Reforms

TUSIAD called the French bill `a big mistake.’

`A proper reply to be given to France would be to accelerate
political reforms to include freedom of expression particularly and
proceed toward our goal of full [EU] membership as a country holding
memberships talks with the European Union,’ the association stated.

TOBB: They won’t be Invited for Bids

Rifat Hisarciklioglu, chairman for the Turkish Union of Chambers and
Commodity Exchanges (TOBB), said public administrations in Turkey
would not invite French companies to bids after the passing of the
bill.

`The French National Parliament made a mistake. Responsibility for
this process falls on it,’ Hisarciklioglu said. The TOBB chairman
thinks France failed in the test of law and conscience and described
the developments as a black page in its history.

Siberian News Online, Russia
Oct 13 2006

Excise warehouse of Armenian alcohol "Sibarmalco" to open in
Krasnoyarsk in November
10/13/2006 6:43:49 PM

An excise warehouse of Armenian alcohol will appear in Krasnoyarsk in
November, as Vazgen Safaryan, the chairman of Armenian Union of
Commodity Manufacturers, stated at the closure of "Days of Armenia in
Siberia" on October, 13.

"The excise warehouse of alcohol made in Armenia will be opened under
the aegis of Exhibition Center "Siberia". The company will be called
Sibarmalco. It will be a warehouse for wholesale of Armenian cognac,
champagne, dry and vintage wine. The warehouse will open next month
and will have an office in Armenia. The annual turnover of this
warehouse is planned at the level of $20-30 million,’ Safaryan
stated.

It is worth reminding that Vazgen Safaryan had announced about the
excise warehouse of Armenian alcohol at the panel discussion
"Commerce and Industrial Chamber, the Union of Commodity
Manufacturers, the Union of Industrialists with representatives of
Armenian business". This project will be implemented by Sarkis
Muradyan, the chairman of the Board of Directors of CJSC
Sibagropromstroy, the director of International Exhibition Business
Center "Siberia".

AzerTag, Azerbaijan
Oct 13 2006

FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS WITH GERMANY’S REPRESENTATIVE IN PACE
[October 13, 2006, 15:22:00]

Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov met with Germany’s representative
in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Mr. Rainder
Steenblock and his accompanying delegation, press service of the
Ministry said.

Mr. Steenblock said it is his first visit to Azerbaijan.

Elmar Mammadyarov noted Azerbaijan is seeking integration into
Europe, and pointed to the Action Plan and memorandum on enhancement
of bilateral energy cooperation to be signed between Azerbaijan and
the European Union.

The Minister said Azerbaijan-NATO cooperation is also rapidly
developing, stressing the successful implementation of the Individual
Partnership Action Plan signed between the Organization and his
country.

On development of Azerbaijan’s energy sector, Mr. Mammadyarov
stressed the importance to enhance the non-oil sector including
agriculture, tourism and infrastructure.

On the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, Elmar
Mammadyarov stressed Armenia’s non-constructive stance on this
dispute.

Rainder Steenblock, in his turn, said Germany is keen to develop its
ties with the countries in South Caucasus region.

He also pointed out that conflicts like the Nagorno-Karabakh pose a
serious threat to the entire region.

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
Oct 13 2006

Azeri Parliament to Make Second Protest Letter to French Government

Source: Trend
Author: J.Shahverdiyev

13.10.2006

The Chairman of the Milli Majlis [Azerbaijani Parliament] condemned
the draft law envisaging punishment for the denial of the so-called
Armenian Genocide adopted on 12 October 2006. The speaker made the
statement at a plenary sitting of parliament on 13 October, Trend
reports.

Asadov noted that the adoption of the draft law contradicts democracy
and human rights. He underlined the role of Armenians residing in
France in the approval of the Bill.

The Parliament made a resolution to establish a commission under the
chairmanship of Vice Speaker Bahar Muradova to develop the second
written appeal to the French parliament on behalf of Milli Majlis.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Focus News, Bulgaria
Oct 13 2006

Bulgarian PM: Chirac and I Haven’t Discussed France’s Bill on
Armenian Genocide

13 October 2006 | 13:42 | FOCUS News Agency

Paris. `French President Jacques Chirac and I haven’t discussed the
French bill on the Armenian genocide’, Bulgarian Prime Minister
Sergey Stanishev said answering a question of AP Stanishev was
received today by the French President at his Elysees Palace. `The
issue is nether related to the French-Bulgarian relations, nor to the
common European politics. It’s an issue related to the Frech-Turkish
relations’, said the Bulgarian Prime Minister, who is on a official
visit to France.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

PanARMENIAN.Net

Baku Police Dispersed Picket at French Embassy in
Azerbaijan
13.10.2006 16:16 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On Friday the United National Front
Party of Azerbaijan tried to hold a picket at the
French Embassy in Baku. A group of 15 party activists
were pushed from the building. Two party members were
detained. Despite the pressure the activists read a
resolution calling on the `Azeri population to boycott
French products, on Milli Mejlis recognize the
genocide of 30 thousand Algerians committed by France
in 1954-1961 and refuse from the French mediation
within the OSCE MG.’ The resolution also calls on the
Azeri government to break all the economic ties with
France, reports Day.az
Baku’s discontent was aroused by the bill adopted by
the French parliament yesterday. The bill provides for
a 45 000 euros fine and a year in prison for the
denial of the Armenian Genocide.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Zaman , Turkey
Oct 13 2006

Brussels Concerned; `Decision Foolish & un-European’
By Selcuk Gultasli, Brussels
Friday, October 13, 2006
zaman.com

Brussels has been deeply troubled by the approval of the French bill
making it illegal to deny the alleged Armenian genocide despite
warnings from the European Union and the European Parliament (EP).

The EU Commission has declared that the passing of the bill will not
be a factor in Turkey’s EU accession negotiation efforts.

Remarking that the bill had not yet become law, the EU Commission
emphasized the significance of leaving the matter to be discussed by
historians and researchers.

While negative reactions from EP members continue, one of the
harshest criticisms came from Joost Lagendijk, chairman of European
Union-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Commission, whose description of the
bill was `foolish and far from belonging to Europe.’

Andrew Duff, the English member of the EP for East England, told the
French assembly, `You have made Voltaire turn in his grave!’

Duff also said the European Court of Human Rights must be ready to
oversee the matter in case it became law.

Camiel Eurlings, the Turkey reporter of the EP, noted that France’s
decision to cut down on freedom of speech had made things more
difficult for Turkey, especially at a time when it was trying to
establish freedom of speech and thought.

Eurlings further noted that `Politicians cannot write history; let’s
leave this to historians.’

Krisztina Nagy, the spokeswoman for EU Commissioner Olli Rehn, said,
"In the case this bill becomes a law, it would prevent the dialogue
and debate that are necessary for reconciliation," and highlighted
that the recognition of `genocide’ is not a Copenhagen criterion.

Asked if the decision would be included in Turkey’s EU accession
progress report to be unveiled on Nov. 9, Nagy said that the two
subjects aren’t related to one another.

When Zaman asked if France’s decision contradict the European Union,
which has been pressing Turkey for freedom of speech, Nagy simply
stressed that the matter should be left to historians and
researchers.