Ukraine parliament sends back bill on alleged Armenian genocide
By Sara Rajabova
Ukrainian Rada (parliament) has refused to discuss the so-called Armenian genocide issue.
The human rights and interethnic relations committee of the Ukrainian parliament refused to submit a draft law on the recognition of the alleged World War I-era genocide to the legislature for discussions.
Ethnic Armenian members of the Verkhovna Rada, Arsen Avakov (Yulia Tymoshenko's Batkivshchyna or Fatherland party) and Vilen Shatvoryan (the ruling Party of Regions), had prepared the draft resolution and the bill was registered by the Rada secretariat.
The parliamentary committee deemed adoption of such a document by the Ukrainian parliament as "contrary to the reality."
Members of the committee pointed out that such documents could be passed only after historians study the issue and arrive at a common decision. Moreover, passage of such a document could undermine the friendship among the nations living in Ukraine, they said.
In this regard, a message signed by a group of Rada members has been sent to the Ukrainian Azerbaijanis Congress. The message says the bill was sent back and there is no need for any discontent of Azerbaijanis and other Turkic-speaking peoples living in Ukraine.
In June, the Congress of Ukrainian Azerbaijanis (CUA), Azerbaijani Youth Association of Ukraine and representatives of the Azerbaijani Council of Elders in Ukraine sent a statement to Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych. The statement said the draft resolution is of serious concern to the Turkic-speaking peoples living in Ukraine, especially the Azerbaijanis.
Armenia commemorates the alleged "Armenian genocide" on April 24 each year. Armenia and the Armenian lobby claim that Turkey's predecessor, the Ottoman Empire, committed genocide in 1915 against Armenians, an allegation dismissed by Ankara.
Their efforts have even resulted in the recognition of the "Armenian genocide" by the parliaments of several countries.
Historians note that during those developments, Armenians began an uprising, taking up arms against Turkey. To counter those actions, the Ottoman Empire decided to resettle the Armenians. The latter claim that their predecessors were subjected to genocide in the process.