Thursday, 6 January 2005

Negationist secretary

Brussels Secretary of Refuse Collection and Monuments, Emir Kir (PS), is a negationist. He doesn't say anything about the Holocaust, but as a Belgian of Turkish origin, he denies the Armenian genocide of 1915-23. In May 2004, he even took part in a Turkish protest march against the Armenian genocide monument in Ixelles. The march was also joined by some Brussels municipal councillors of MR, PS and cdH. Now, he has authority over all monuments in the Brussels Capital Region. His fellow party member, Ixelles mayor Willy Decourty, said he doesn't think about protecting the monument.
Clearly, one genocide is different from another. In Belgium special laws are voted against denying or trivializing the Holocaust. But other genocides can be denied and even more, Francophone parties support these repudiations, since they're winning Turkish votes in Brussels with it. I'm against laws that punish revisionism and negationism, but I don't think you should allow ministers to do so. Denial of the Holocaust would have caused immediate dismissal. Now, it's allowed or even supported. Tsss...

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