French committee approves amendment on Armenian allegations

PARIS (A.A) - January 18, 2012 - A committee with the French parliament approved Wednesday an amendment that might avert a debate at the Senate floor on a bill that makes it a crime to deny Armenian allegations on the Ottoman era incidents of 1915. The bill is set to come to the Senate floor next Monday but French Senate members could vote to uphold the Legislations Committee's decision and drop the bill off the agenda without debating it. The bill, which got the approval of the lower house of the French parliament, makes denial of Ottoman era incidents of 1915 punishable in France with a prison term of one year and a fine of 45 thousand.  A similar bill -- proposed by the Socialist Party -- was approved in 2006 by the lower house but the Senate rejected to debate the bill last May when it upheld the committee's decision back then.