“HayaQve” demands immediate end to criminal prosecution of the Catholicos of All Armenians

An illegitimate regime that has falsified National Assembly elections and usurped the power of the people, by interfering in the canonical affairs of the Holy Armenian Apostolic Church and advancing an agenda to remove the Catholicos of All Armenians from office, is directly serving the interests of the Turkish-Azerbaijani tandem, which is to destroy our Church and deprive the Armenian people of this vital, two-thousand-year-old institution, which serves as a bulwark of its national and spiritual identity. This is stated in a declaration by the national-civic association “HayaQve.”

“Respect for the right of the Armenian Apostolic Church to internal self-governance, and refraining from any interference in its canonical and administrative activities, are both a requirement of the Constitution of Armenia and an international obligation undertaken by the state. The use of criminal prosecution tools by state authorities to pressure the Church constitutes a violation of the fundamental principles of Armenia’s constitutional order, the rule of law, and freedom of religion.

In particular, the forced entanglement of the courts in political persecution against senior clergy is a gross violation of the fundamental principle of separation and balance of powers, which serves as a clear indicator of Armenia’s transformation into a dictatorship and deals a severe blow to our state’s international reputation.

“HayaQve” demands that state institutions:

🔹 be guided by the Constitution and laws of the Republic of Armenia, refrain from following the political directives of the current regime, and immediately end the criminal prosecution of the Catholicos of All Armenians and senior clergy, which is of an evidently political nature;

🔹 exclude any attempts at state interference in the internal self-governance processes of the Armenian Apostolic Church;

🔹 ensure full protection of freedom of religion and the autonomy of religious organizations, as guaranteed by the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia and the norms of international law.

We call on international organizations, human rights structures, and Armenia’s international partners to give a clear assessment of the ongoing processes, speak about this openly, and prevent these dangerous steps directed against Armenia’s constitutional order and freedom of religion,” the statement reads.