STATEMENT: We Will Defend the Constitutional Status and Autonomy of the Armenian Apostolic Church

The Wings of Unity Party notes that the commencement of criminal proceedings against the Catholicos of All Armenians and senior clergy of the Armenian Apostolic Church brings relations between the authorities and the Church to a dangerous and unacceptable threshold.

The formal subject matter of the case is the alleged obstruction of the enforcement of a judicial act. However, its substantive subject matter is much broader: it concerns the boundary between the jurisdiction of a secular court and the canonical autonomy of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Political authorities have no right to use criminal prosecution as a means of interfering in the internal canonical life of the Church, determining the status of clergy, or restructuring the leadership of the Armenian Apostolic Church in accordance with their political objectives.

Of particular concern is the fact that the criminal proceedings were preceded by repeated public statements by the country’s Prime Minister regarding the removal of the Catholicos of All Armenians, while this objective had effectively also become part of the political agenda and pre-election rhetoric of the ruling political force. Under these circumstances, the trial cannot be viewed as an ordinary criminal proceeding entirely free from political context.

The Armenian Apostolic Church is one of the pillars of the spiritual, historical, and national identity of the Armenian people. Political pressure against the Church and the Supreme Patriarch is a blow not only to our spiritual institution, but also to national unity, the foundations of statehood, and the constitutional balance.

The Wings of Unity Party expresses its unequivocal support for the Holy Armenian Apostolic Church and His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians.

We demand an end to political pressure against the Church and the use of criminal prosecution as a political instrument; the exclusion of any direct or indirect influence by the executive branch on the judicial proceedings; respect for the autonomy of the Armenian Apostolic Church protected by the Constitution; and the removal of restrictions that obstruct the normal spiritual and pastoral activities of the Catholicos of All Armenians and other clergy.

The state is obliged to uphold the rule of law; however, it cannot turn the law into an instrument for establishing political control over the Armenian Apostolic Church. The separation of the Church from the state is a constitutional principle that requires the state authorities to respect its internal, canonical, and institutional autonomy.

Such interference by the political authorities violates not only the rights of clergy, but also the fundamental right of citizens and religious communities to freedom of conscience, religion, and belief.

The Wings of Unity Party will consistently defend the constitutional status and autonomy of the Armenian Apostolic Church.