With regard to your article titled "European Parliament passes genocide law, rejects Baltic demands" published in The Baltic Times of April 26 's May 2, 2007, I would kindly like to draw your attention to some of the points raised in your piece.
You correctly point out that the Framework Decision on Racism and Xenophobia, passed by the European Council, rather than the European Parliament, on April 19, 2007, covers the internationally-recognized genocides of the Jews and Rwandans. This is because the existence of both of these genocides, as well as the Srebrenica Genocide of 1995, has been established by international competent courts (International Military Tribunal of Nuremburg, International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia respectively) specifically created for this purpose. Therefore, the Framework Decision lawfully covers denying the judgements of the mentioned international tribunals.
The rejection of any "allegation" of a genocide however, is not and should not be covered by the decision. In line with legal 's and not the least, logical 's principles, in cases where the "denial" of any crime constitutes another crime, it would be a prerequisite for the first crime to have been lawfully established, in order for the second crime to exist.
Regarding the events of 1915 's which, for your information actually took place three years prior to the end of the First World War 's in the absence of proof of the "genocide" allegations or a judgement by "the national court of the state in whose territory the crime was committed or an international competent tribunal (UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, 1948)," it would be wrongful to assume that the "first crime," which the second crime should be based on, exists. It is for this reason that the "denial that the 1915 events constitute a genocide," should not be covered by the Framework Decision.
I would also, for reasons of objectivity, strongly discourage the usage of the word "denial" while describing the Turkish attitude towards the 1915 events, not only because this word has a negative connotation to it and a judgement in itself, but mostly because its definition is "refusal to admit the truth or reality," unless of course The Baltic Times is able to provide proof of the existence of a genocide.
