May UK give up its policy of Armenian Genocide denial?As much as the prospect of British MP Chris Bryant being appointed as a “rapporteur on Armenia and Turkey” sounds like an exciting news to come out from the UK, it’s not true.
24.10.2009 18:52 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ For the first time since 1918, members of British parliament who spoke the truth about the Armenian Genocide were appointed rapporteurs on Armenia and Turkey. MP Chris Bryant called on the House of Commons to recognize the Armenian Genocide, freelance French journalist Jean Eckian told PanARMENIAN.Net. Mr. Bryant reminded that the previous Cabinets refrained from any assessment of the 1915 events, saying that “historians can't come to a conclusion on the issue.” “However, Geoff Hoon, Dennis Macshane, Doug Alexander, Baroness Ramsey Baroness Scotland , Lord Treisman and Lord Malloch-Brown never consulted any prominent historian,” he said. “And the person responsible for the policy of denial is Jack Straw, currently Minister of Justice.” According to Mr. Bryant, to show solidarity with Armenia, the parliament should urge resignation of Minister Straw, who disseminated lies for so many years. In a parliamentary debate in 1921, Sir Neville Chamberlain said, “I cannot think without something like horror and dismay of the abominable barbarities which have been practised in Armenia, and if I condemn Turkish rule in Armenia it is not because it is Mohammedan rule over Christian people, but because it is a barbarous and brutal rule, which would disgrace whatever Government in which it originated."
I asked Chris Bryant via Twitter to clarify the news. Below is our exchange of messages.
@ChrisBryantMP Is this true that you've been appointed as "rapporteur on #Armenia-#Turkey"? http://bit.ly/3mqE9t Trying to confirm the info.
http://twitter.com/unzippedblog/status/5127416363
@unzippedblog No - complete and utter nonsense.
http://twitter.com/ChrisBryantMP/status/5145211605
@ChrisBryantMP Thanks for clarifications, will post on my blog. I was suspicious re that news item.
http://twitter.com/unzippedblog/status/5145372463
Posts
4 comments:
Nice use of Twitter. I'm impressed, and only goes to show how something so simple can be used to check facts, something PanArmenian.Net rarely does.
I'll add this story to a list of false news and disinformation this year, starting with "anti-Jewish pograms" in Sumgait which never occured.
Select blogs. The only news on Armenia and the South Caucasus worth reading... :)
Global Voices Online Armenia: Twitter counters false media report
After a news item in the local press reported that a British MP had been appointed as rapporteur on Armenia and Turkey, Unzipped says that it used Twitter to check the accuracy of the story. Tweeting a question to the MP in question, it turned out that the report was false.
Hi, Mika.
Thank you for bringing this issue to a public (and our) attention.
We are investigating this, and will react during the day.
Look forward to learning the results of your investigation. Please, keep posted on developments.
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