Armenian diocesan leaders in Diaspora condemn police for obstructing Karekin II’s entry to Sardarapat Memorial

The diocesan leaders of the Armenian Apostolic Church in the Diaspora strongly condemn the attempts of the police to obstruct the entry of Karekin II to the Sardarapat Memorial.

“We are saddened to learn how the police prevented the entourage of the Catholicos of All Armenians from entering the Sardarapat Memorial on May 28, when the Patriarch of Armenia and the clergy were visiting the national memorial to pray for the prosperity of our homeland and to honor the patriotic defenders of Armenia.

The victory of Sardarapat was achieved by the collective will of the entire Armenian people in the life-and-death struggle. It is a symbol of the unity, victories, and awakening of our people, in the construction of which many devoted Armenian clergy participated.

In the previous decades, there was never a case when any Armenian was forbidden to visit the Sardarapat Memorial, even more so, the Catholicos of All Armenians, whose visit the state authorities were notified about in advance.

This kind of inappropriate behavior by the police is a dishonor for the entire Christian Armenian community.

We call on the relevant state bodies to carefully and impartially investigate what happened and hold all the perpetrators of the incident accountable,” the statement reads.

The statement was joined by the heads of the Western Diocese of the USA, the Eastern Diocese of the USA, the leaders of the dioceses of Uruguay, Brazil, Argentina, Australia and New Zealand, France, Central Europe and Scandinavia, Romania, Germany, the Baltic States, Greece, Switzerland, Russia, Ukraine, Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Georgia, etc.