Belgium’s future Prime Minister Yves Leterme stated on recognizing Armenian Genocide

11.06.2007
PanARMENIAN.Net

During the last days before the Belgian parliamentarian elections the future Prime Minister of the country Yves Leterme recognized the Armenian Genocide without any stipulations, though till that very moment he cast doubt on the fact of Genocide, the PanARMENIAN.Net journalist was told Armenia’s Embassy to Belgium. “The Socialist Party of Belgium, which was against amendments to the law on negatianism concerning the Armenian Genocide, has lost the elections and most likely will not be represented in the government. The liberals, which supported those amendments, will stay in the cabinet,” the Armenian Embassy in Belgium informed.

“Flemish Christian Democrats” party at the head of Yves Leterme gathered the majority of votes at the June 10 parliamentarian elections in Belgium. As a result, the party now has 30 mandates in the 150-seat House of Representatives. Verhofstadt has already turned to the Belgian monarch with a request of resignation.

More than 7.7 million eligible Belgian citizens participated in the voting. They elected 150 MPs for the House of Representatives and 40 Senate members. Participation in the voting is compulsory for citizens of Belgium. According to the local legislation, those who do not participate in the voting and do not have good reasons are subject to a 200-euro fine. 36 ethnic Turks run for the parliament. But still it is unknown how many of them passed to the parliament of the country. Some 160 000 Turks reside in Belgium. 120 000 of them have Belgium citizenship, 90 000 of which the right to vote.

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