Catholicos Garegin II Calls for Pashinyan's Resignation, State Department Report Says

The State Department has released its annual report on religious freedoms around the world, including in Armenia. The report addresses tensions between the church and government, issues concerning religious minorities, and other matters, as reported by Voice of America.

According to the report, Armenia's constitution prohibits discrimination based on religion and stipulates the separation of "religious organizations" and the state. It recognizes the "Armenian Apostolic Church" (AAC) as having a unique mission in the spiritual life of the Armenian people, the development of national culture, and the preservation of national identity.

Simultaneously, the report emphasizes that "government and representatives of the Armenian Apostolic Church, including its leader, Catholicos Garegin II, and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, have made public critical statements regarding each other concerning the government's actions and the involvement of the Armenian Apostolic Church in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict."

The report notes that during 2023, clergymen of the Armenian Apostolic Church continued to participate in civil discourse without restrictions, and Catholicos Garegin II has called for Prime Minister Pashinyan's resignation. "Following the military operations by Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh on September 19-20, and the removal of almost all ethnic Armenians from the region, a gathering of bishops from the Armenian Apostolic Church issued a statement on October 3 criticizing the government's attitude towards the created situation," the State Department's report states.

It emphasizes that despite the objections from the Armenian Apostolic Church, authorities began gradually removing the mandatory 'History of the Armenian Apostolic Church' course from the school curriculum during the 2023 academic year, replacing it with a broader educational program that includes relevant historical content. The State Department noted that this move was welcomed by representatives of the Yazidi community in Armenia, whose children had also been required to take this mandatory course.