Turkey's Armenians distrust the French bill that makes it a jailable offense to deny their ancestors were the victims of Armenian Genocide under Ottoman rule, reports AFP/Istanbul. They fear it will antagonize the Turkish majority and further strain an already tense debate. Among the first to condemn the bill was journalist Hrant Dink, who is among a handful of taboo-breaking intellectuals in Turkey who have openly argued that the massacres were genocide, drawing nationalist ire and landing himself in court.

"This is idiocy," the Turkish-Armenian Dink said in remarks to the liberal daily Radikal. "It only shows that those who restrict freedom of expression in Turkey and those who try to restrict it in France are of the same mentality." Dink said he was ready to defend freedom of expression even if it means running the risk of imprisonment in France.
"I am standing trial in Turkey for saying it was genocide. If this bill is adopted, I will go to France and, in spite of my conviction, I will say it was not genocide," he said in a television interview. "The two countries can then compete to see who throws me in jail first."

Etyen Mahcupyan, a columnist for the conservative daily Zaman, called on European countries to back efforts to improve democracy in Turkey, which he said was the only way to ensure free debate and challenge Ankara's official line.