European court of human rights to adjudicate on seizure of Christian property in Turkey

Armenian Assembly of America, Washington, 14/9/2005

In both cases, property gifted to the Armenian and Greek foundations were seized as the Turkish courts upheld orders declaring that the bequest violated a decree disallowing non-Moslems from donating real estate. If the court rules in favor of the foundations, hundreds of buildings seized in the past may be returned.

Earlier this year, Armenian Assembly Board Member and former Board of Directors Chairman Van Krikorian testified before the Helsinki Commission on freedom of religion in Turkey with respect to the Armenian Church and community. During his testimony Krikorian noted that “for centuries, Armenians paid and in many places still pay a high price for their Christianity,” and that seizure and destruction of Armenian Church property was commonplace. Krikorian noted that in 1914, in Turkey, there were approximately 5,000 Armenian Churches, seminaries and schools registered by the Patriarchate and that today, 90 years after the Armenian Genocide, there are less than 50 Armenian Churches under the Patriarchate’s jurisdiction. Krikorian also pointed to the Soorp Purgich Armenian Hospital as an example of how the Treaty of Lausanne and other international standards for protecting religious rights are not being upheld, and urged the Helsinki Commission to play a critical leadership role in addressing these issues.

Jeff King, President of International Christian Concern* , who also testified before the Commission, called the expected decision by the European Court “an opportunity to right a long-standing injustice and an opportunity for Turkey to utilize this opportunity to strengthen its commitment to democratic reforms and to uphold its international obligations to protect its citizens.”

At the same time that the European Human Rights Court is considering this matter, in the United States, the House International Relations Committee is scheduled to review another human rights issue; affirmation of the Armenian Genocide. The Committee will mark-up H. Res. 316, a bipartisan, pan-Armenian resolution, which reaffirms the United States record on the Armenian Genocide, and was introduced by Armenian Caucus Members George Radanovich (R-CA) and Adam Schiff (D-CA), along with Caucus Co-Chairs Joe Knollenberg (R-MI) and Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ).

“The anticipated European Court action is one of many venues in which Turkey’s human and minority rights are being reviewed. Tomorrow, the House International Relations Committee will consider legislation, which affirms the Armenian Genocide and the American role in alerting the international community and launching an unprecedented humanitarian campaign to save the survivors,” said Armenian Assembly** Executive Director Bryan Ardouny. “Over the last weeks and months, the community has rallied its support behind H. Res. 316 and we are confident about tomorrow’s mark-up,” added Ardouny.


Editor’s Note: The testimony of Van Krikorian and Jeff King before the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki Commission) regarding Religious Freedom in Turkey can be found at www.csce.org.

*International Christian Concern (ICC) is a non-profit and interdenominational human rights organization dedicated to assisting and sustaining Christians who are victims of persecution and discrimination due to practicing their faith. ICC’s web site is www.persecution.org

**The Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian issues. It is a 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt membership organization.

Links:
www.aaainc.org