Official Yerevan Welcomes ‘Important Step’
The Hellenic Parliament adopted a bill (54 to 42, three abstentions) on Sept. 9 criminalizing the denial of genocides including the Holocaust, the Armenian Genocide, and the genocide of the Pontic Greeks, thus becoming the third European country after Switzerland and Slovakia to adopt such a measure.
The bill known as “Fight against Xenophobia” envisions bringing criminal charges for denial of the genocides of not only Jews, but also Armenians and Pontus Greeks. The bill stipulates heavy fines and imprisonment terms for individuals who publicly deny genocides and other crimes against humanity that are recognized by the Greek Parliament and international courts.
Armenia’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement welcoming the adoption of the bill. “The adoption of this Bill once again demonstrates adherence of Greece to the universal human values and is an important step towards the prevention of genocides and other heinous crimes against humanity,” said Minister of Foreign Affairs Edward Nalbandian.
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