Denial of the Armenian Genocide is now criminalized in France!

[GennGreymane]

A new french law now criminalizes denial of the Armenian genocide. Lets hope more countries follow suit! No genocide should ever be ignored

[phyto]

Although I agree with the spirit; I do think that any step taken by a government to censor what someone says is a step in the wrong direction.

[Reeve]

While I don't think Genocide should be ignored, I think criminalizing denial of a historical event impinges on Freedom of Speech. I don't know if France has a similar constitutional protection to the US First Amendment, but I value freedom of speech, even when I believe the thing being expressed is vile.

[Chickat]

Although I agree with the spirit; I do think that any step taken by a government to censor what someone says is a step in the wrong direction.

Agreed 100%

[Sealbinder]

Genocide must be recognized and should never be ignored or denied. Those who deny the genocides of the world disgust me.

[Saladbar]

These types of laws just don't make sense to me.

[anveena]

People should be allowed to have whatever opinions they want on any subject even if it's completely false and wrong. The law is terrible and wrong in my opinion.

[Deleted]

A new french law now criminalizes denial of the Armenian genocide. Lets hope more countries follow suit! No genocide should ever be ignored

Fail.

While they're correct, that's a fucking dangerous precedent. You can't start to legislate how people can interpret history.

Let's legislate next that you can't deny that Sarkozy has always been the son of God and the supreme ruler of France.

[Skippy88]

I think I saw this headline the other night. Wasn't the genocide in 1910 or somewhere around that time?

[Foosha]

I think I saw this headline the other night. Wasn't the genocide in 1910 or somewhere around that time?

It was during WW1 so I'm guessing 1914 or 1915? Probably 1915. But this is just idiotic. France, this is 1984, 1984, meet France.

There's a famous quote along the lines of "Those who control the present control the past, and those who control the past control the future" IDK something like that...

[Bakis]

Good, it is already labeled as genocide in many countries. Sweden, not US it was stopped by Clinton I believe but most states did individually conclude that it was a genocide.
Dont know what the turks are up too, feel pretty damn bad that they cant accept their history. It is notlike todays turks or even their parents had anything at all to do with it.

Just another example of how fucked up national pride and patriotism can be.

[Deleted]

It was the Armenians fault that so many Turks and Armenians diedthey sided after 600years of peace with the enemy who invaded the empire then its clear why many armenians died also turks were killed by armenians but no one sees that because they say it was war the thing with the armenians was also war so i have no sadness left for them because i come from the turkish region were armenians were they killed entire villages and burned down mosques so i dont think it was a genocide and even the UN and states like China didnt say it was a genocide

[Activi-T]

People should be allowed to have whatever opinions they want on any subject even if it's completely false and wrong. The law is terrible and wrong in my opinion.

I agree someone is entitled to have any opinion they wish. What i object to is people being able to express these vile opinions to the public in general when these types of things digust the vast majority. It's why I feel hate speech laws are totally justified for monitoring what the public at large have to be subjective to. In the privacy of your own home or in the company of like minded individuals then you can say what you like but i shouldn't have to cross the street or have to move because someone in my vicinity is spewing out hateful rubbish.

[Feranor]

This thread requires a solid Hitchslap:

[BurningStick]

While denying a genocide it outright stupid, criminalizing it seems wrong in my opinion. Feels like an infringement on the freedom of speech.

[Belloc]

It was the Armenians fault that so many Turks and Armenians diedthey sided after 600years of peace with the enemy who invaded the empire then its clear why many armenians died also turks were killed by armenians but no one sees that because they say it was war the thing with the armenians was also war so i have no sadness left for them because i come from the turkish region were armenians were they killed entire villages and burned down mosques so i dont think it was a genocide and even the UN and states like China didnt say it was a genocide

You're spewing a whole lot of what sounds like propaganda. If I had to take a guess, I'd say that you heard all of that somewhere and never bothered to confirm any of it.

[Bakis]

You're spewing a whole lot of what sounds like propaganda. If I had to take a guess, I'd say that you heard all of that somewhere and never bothered to confirm any of it.

Turkish version of FOX news probaly.
Either way, people can have different opinions, fact of the matter is that the vast majority of scholars do indeed label it as a genocide.
And would like to mention it again, it is history. We learn from our history and history also mean that todays turks and their parents had nothing to do with it.

[Deleted]

You're spewing a whole lot of what sounds like propaganda. If I had to take a guess, I'd say that you heard all of that somewhere and never bothered to confirm any of it.

I must not even bother just like i said i come from the region were armenians executed many turks and just like i said not even Israel has accepted it as an genocide also they said that 1.5million armenians were killed yeah but there were only 1.7million armenians in the empire so how come that in armenia are now over 3million people?

[Kuntantee]

This is violation of freedom of speech and the irony is that it comes from France. You started all the human rights thingy and now this?I'm from Turkey and I have my personal opinion on this subject but let's say there is a genocide... Is it way to solve this problem? Do you really think Turkey will accept the genocide just because some countries consider denying it as illegal? Shame on France not because they support genocide, it's because they violate their own creation. Armanians won't get anywhere with this way.

[Deleted]

Turkish version of FOX news probaly.
Either way, people can have different opinions, fact of the matter is that the vast majority of scholars do indeed label it as a genocide.
And would like to mention it again, it is history. We learn from our history and history also mean that todays turks and their parents had nothing to do with it.

But should alternative versions of history be banned? Shouldn't you be allowed to believe that the holocaust never happened? Yes, it's in my opinion an absolutely stupid and uneducated, but it falls under the freedom of speech.