YEREVAN. – Armenian National Assembly Speaker Samvel Nikoyan welcomed the French Senate’s passing of the bill that criminalizes the denial of genocides. 

“By adopting the law proposal that criminalizes the denial of the Armenian Genocide, the French Senate showed the entire world that it is guided by universal values, and we are hopeful that many countries will follow France’s example in a foreseeable future,” Samvel Nikoyan wrote in his Facebook account.   

To note, with a vote of 127 in favor and 86 against, France’s Senate passed Monday the bill that criminalizes the denial of the genocides which this country has formally recognized. And these are the Armenian Genocide and the Jewish Holocaust. This law sets a one-year prison sentence plus a 45-thousand-Euro fine for anyone who denies these genocides. According to the regulations, the French President will ratify it within fifteen days.