Armenian lawyers presented the Catholicos with proposals for protecting the rights of the church

Representatives of the “Five Human Rights Defenders” initiative, which brings together well-known Armenian lawyers, presented their proposals for protecting the rights of the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC) to Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II, the AAC press office reported on Monday.

It is noted that during Monday's meeting, issues related to the recent illegal campaign by the Armenian authorities against the Armenian Apostolic Church and clergy were discussed.

“The members of the initiative presented their thoughts and proposals to His Holiness the Patriarch on ensuring the protection of the rights of the church within the framework of the law,” the statement said. It is noted that the Catholicos of All Armenians expressed his gratitude to the human rights defenders for their efforts to protect the church and the clergy.

Relations between the Armenian authorities and the Armenian Apostolic Church deteriorated sharply after Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan posted offensive messages about the Armenian Apostolic Church on Facebook* at the end of May, including the use of profanity. He later proposed changing the procedure for electing the Catholicos of All Armenians and giving the state a decisive role in the process.

Samvel Karapetyan, an entrepreneur and philanthropist who stood up for the church, was arrested, sparking outrage among numerous representatives of the diaspora around the world, who told RIA Novosti that political persecution of the church and its supporters was unacceptable. Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, leader of the Holy Struggle movement, was also arrested. He was the leader of the protesters who demanded the prime minister's resignation in 2024. At the end of June, Archbishop Mikael Adzhapakhyan, head of the Shirak Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, was arrested in Yerevan. A case was brought against him and he was accused of calling for a seizure of power. The hierarch himself called the charges fabricated. Before Ajapakhian's arrest, Armenian National Security Service officers arrived at the residence of the Catholicos of All Armenians in Echmiadzin to detain the archbishop, but were met with resistance from believers and priests.

Reprinted from https://ria.ru/