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Garo Paylan submits Armenian Genocide bill to Turkish Parliament

Armenian Member of Turkish Parliament Garo Paylan representing the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) has submitted a draft law to the Turkish Grand National Assembly on “Recognition of Armenian Genocide”, “Removal of the Names of Genocide Perpetrators from Public Places” and “Amendment to Turkish Citizenship Law.”

The bill says that”According to a census conducted in 1914, approximately two million Armenians lived in the Ottoman Empire. At the night of April 24, 1915, around 250 Armenian intellectuals, including MPs and writers were arrested in Istanbul.”

“After these people were sent into exile in Ayas and Cankiri, the vast majority of them were killed. Among the ones sent into exile and killed were Dr. Nazaret Dagavaryan (MP of Ottoman Empire), Armen Doryan (poet and journalist), Shavarsh Krisyan (editor of the sports magazine Marmnamarz), Levon Larents (poet), Rupen Sevag (poet), Yenovk Sahen (theater artist), Siamanto [Atom Yarcanyan] (poet), Hagop Terziyan (pharmacist and writer), Taniel Varujan (poet), Krikor Yesayan (teacher and translator), Rupen Zartaryan (writer and poet), Diran Kelekyan (writer and Professor of Turkish language) and Krikor Zohrab (MP of Ottoman Empire and writer),” the draft reads.

The bill notes that Ottoman Turkey tried to describe the genocide as a “natural war measure” and states that the denial has led to a lot of hate crimes against minorities throughout the history of the Turkish Republic.

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