MP Garo Paylan Asks Turkish Parliament to Recognize Armenian Genocide

ISTANBUL — Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) İstanbul-Armenian MP Garo Paylan  has announced that he has submitted a legislative proposal to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey for the “Recognition of Armenian Genocide”, “Removal of the Names of Genocide Perpetrators from Public Places” and “Amendment to Turkish Citizenship Law.”

In the general preamble of the law draft, it is stated: “According to a census conducted in 1914, approximately two million Armenians lived in the Ottoman Empire. At the night of April 24, 1915, around 250 Armenian intellectuals, including MPs and writers were arrested in Istanbul.”

“After these people were sent into exile in Ayas and Cankiri, the vast majority of them were killed. Among the ones sent into exile and killed were Dr. Nazaret Dagavaryan (MP of Ottoman Empire), Armen Doryan (poet and journalist), Shavarsh Krisyan (editor of the sports magazine Marmnamarz), Levon Larents (poet), Rupen Sevag (poet), Yenovk Sahen (theater artist), Siamanto [Atom Yarcanyan] (poet), Hagop Terziyan (pharmacist and writer), Taniel Varujan (poet), Krikor Yesayan (teacher and translator), Rupen Zartaryan (writer and poet), Diran Kelekyan (writer and Professor of Turkish language) and Krikor Zohrab (MP of Ottoman Empire and writer),” the draft reads.

Furthermore, Paylan asks the parliament to confer citizenship on the descendants of those who were forced to leave Turkey or were deported because of the events.

Paylan also demands that a commission to be established to identify the names that were responsible for the deportation of Armenians and to clear those names from public spaces.