“Some people are worried that people can be prosecuted for song lyrics or other artistic works. For example, there is a song that says, “my brother and I are shooting the Turks.” Can the singer be criminally prosecuted now?” My Step deputy Suren Grigoryan asked in parliament regarding newly passed legislation that criminalizes public calls to violence and justification of those calls to violence.
He continued. “I don’t think so. When we say “destroy the Turks,” are we saying that to refer to the ethnic group, or are we saying that to refer to an enemy? How can we clarify that? There were Turks during the Armenian Genocide who hid Armenians in their homes so that they wouldn’t be killed. We’re not saying that we should kill those Turks. When Armenians refer to Turks, they are using that as a synonym for the word “enemy.” I think that the Turks who saved Armenians were good people, and it would be wrong to say that they should be killed. In general, it is not good to commit violence because someone belongs to a particular ethnic group. But when we refer to Turks or Azeris to mean enemy as opposed to the ethnic groups themselves, it is clear that this new legislation cannot be applied in those instances. I believe that those who will enforce the law will also understand that.”
Luiza Sukiasyan
