Pope Francis’ Armenian Genocide statement is impermissible for a religious leader, Turkish Parliament Speaker Cemil Cicek said.

“On the one hand, the Vatican is a state formation, but the Pope has religious obligations, and religious leaders should contribute to peace in society,” Cicek stated, and added: “But he [i.e. the Pope] chose the position of one of the sides, which is not fair; it’s not a peacemaking approach.”

The Turkish parliament leader stressed that it is unacceptable to politicize historical facts, and noted that the presumption of innocence is the basic principle of the system of rights.

“Unless one of the sides proves, unless there is an international court decision, it is impermissible to accuse a people and society,” Cemil Cicek maintained.