French Parliament passes new bill criminalizing denial of Armenian Genocide: Azatutyun
France’s lower house of parliament on Friday unanimously passed a new bill criminalizing the denial of the 1915 Armenian genocide in Ottoman Turkey and other crimes against humanity recognized by the French state. The bill approved by the National Assembly in the first reading stipulates that any public denial of those atrocities will be punishable by up to one year’s imprisonment and a 45,000-euro ($50,000) fine. It must be approved by the French Senate in order to become a law. Currently, French law only makes it a crime to deny the Holocaust. The two houses of France’s parliament already passed a law against Armenian genocide denial in December 2011 and January 2012. The French constitutional court subsequently struck down that law, however, saying that it runs counter to freedom of speech. Read more here
