On July 1, Armenian and Lebanese journalists and media representatives attended a press conference organized by the Information Office of the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia at the Cilicia Museum Hall of the Mairavank Monastery in Antelias, reports Lebanon’s Aztag Daily, according to Hayern Aysor.

The press conference began with opening remarks by the Information Unit correspondent, Supreme Archimandrite Housig Mardirosian, who introduced the speakers, including lawyer for properties, Professor Cem Sofvoglu, Armenian Genocide expert, Professor Taner Akcam and lecturer of a Lebanese university, Dr. Nora Bairagdarian.

Let us mention that lawyer at international courts, Dr. Paiam Akhavan was also supposed to participate in the press conference, but hadn’t been able to attend the press conference due to a late arrival.

In his speech in Arabic, Supreme Archimandrite Housig Mardirosian touched upon the sufferings that the Armenians experienced in the Ottoman Empire, especially between 1894 and 1923. He expressed his gratitude and emphasized the importance of Lebanon, which became the homeland for the rebirth and awakening of the Armenian people and mentioned the pivotal role of the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia. “The Catholicosate filed a lawsuit against the Turkish Constitutional Court. Today, two months after the lawsuit was filed, our sources report that the Turkish Constitutional Court has started examining the documents.”

Nora Bairagdarian listed the steps for filing the lawsuit in relation to the Catholicosate of Sis (for instance, the organizing of an international conference “From Recognition to Reparation” in February 2012 and the creation of a committee comprised of Turkish lawyers and international experts). Afterwards, Dr. Bairagdarian stressed the great importance of the Catholicosate of Sis for the Armenian people. He recalled that the Constitutional Court had to organize the discussion on the lawsuit within a maximum of 90 days following submission on 27 April 2015. If not, the issue will be presented to the European Court of Human Rights.

In his speech in English, Professor Cem Sofvoglu clarified the terms and conditions of the case of the Catholicosate of Sis, as well as difficulties and opportunities. He emphasized that instigating this case was unprecedented in the history of Turkish property and judicial cases. Professor Sofvoglu emphasized that the issue was presented merely from the angle of human rights and was far from political and other considerations. He mentioned that by the decrees issued in 1983 and in 2001, the Turkish government prohibits the recording of any information or document about properties and has prohibited the study on archives containing information about the issue. According to the speaker, by the law adopted in 1963, it is prohibited to return any property to the owner (especially in the case of Armenians). Professor Sofvoglu said the Court would most probably announce its decision between the months of September and November. Professor Sofvoglu also mentioned that the main purpose of the lawsuit is to see the return of property to the Catholicosate of Sis, not financial reparation.

In his speech, Dr. Taner Akcam mentioned that there are thousands of documents related to the case in Ottoman archives. Akcam stressed the fact that the Ottoman authorities had attached special importance to the Catholicosate of Sis, considering it as the spiritual and religious center of the Armenian people and one of the totally independent spiritual centers of Constantinople and Etchmiadzin. Akcam brought up an example and cited a letter of Taleat Pasha and Cemal Pasha in which it is stressed that it’s almost impossible to destroy the Catholicosate of Sis, taking into consideration its importance for all Armenians in terms of destiny.

At the end, the speakers answered questions from the attendees.