Injunction freezes Melkonian closure decision
By Jean Christou

Cyprus Mail, Cyprus
June 16 2005

THE ARMENIAN Patriarch of Constantinople and Turkey, Mesrob Mutafyan,
has filed a court injunction against the AGBU to overturn the decision
to close the Melkonian Educational Institute in Nicosia.

The interim order, issued on June 7, also forbids the AGBU or its
agents in Cyprus from selling or developing any part of the school’s
estate on the busy Limassol Avenue.

The AGBU has managed the property, as well as the secondary boarding
school, and decided last year that the school would close in June
2005. This decision was challenged by parents and members of the
school’s worldwide alumni, as it is the only institution of its kind in
the enlarged European Union, while also teaching the Armenian language
and culture to youngsters from eastern Europe and the Middle East.

The injunction follows a recent court action filed by the Patriarch
in the Nicosia District Court, challenging the AGBU’s decision to
close 79-year-old school, in violation of the initial trust set up
by the school’s founder, Garabed Melkonian. The new injunction also
demands that the AGBU accounts for all amounts collected from the
management of the estate as well as any amount collected during the
past eight decades.

Finally, the Patriarch also demands that the transfer of the estate’s
deed to the AGBU be considered null and void and that this should be
transferred to the Patriarch in trust for the Armenian communities
of Cyprus and the region, as well as the Armenian Diaspora as a whole.

In a statement issued yesterday, the Melkonian Alumni in Cyprus and
concerned parents hailed the court order saying that “justice will
take its course”.

This, they said, raises hopes that the school could be saved and may
even resume operations in September.