Turkey is accusing France for its bill that criminalizes the denial of genocides, including the Armenian Genocide, stressing that this is a violation of the freedom of speech, but it disregards the fact that renowned Turkish writer Temel Demirer is currently being tried for saying “genocide” in Turkey.     

In its article entitled, “Let go of France, look at Turkey,” Taraf daily of Turkey informs that the trial of Demirer is still continuing, and that he is being tried with the Turkish Criminal Code’s infamous Article 301.  

On the first-year anniversary of the murder of Hrant Dink—the founder and former chief editor of Istanbul’s Agos Armenian weekly, who was killed in 2007—Temel Demirer had stated that Dink was killed because he had said genocide was committed in this country (Turkey).

“Yes, genocide was committed in this country,” the Turkish writer had said, and subsequently Prosecutor Levent Savas brought a case against him on charges of “denying Turkish arguments.”

What is more, Turkey’s Justice Minister asserted that Demirer will continue to be tried with Article 301, on charges of “degrading the Republic of Turkey.”