ATA CALLS ON MINISTER OF CULTURE TO GIVE LEGAL ASSESSMENT TO UNSANCTIONED REDESIGNING OF THE ARMENIAN NORASHEN CHURCH

ArmInfo
2009-02-13 10:46:00

ArmInfo-BLACK SEA PRESS. The Assembly of Tbilisi Armenians (ATA)
has addressed the Minister of Culture, Monuments Prote ction and
Sports of Georgia, Nikoloz Rurua with the request to give legal
assessment to the actions of certain individuals in connection with
the illegal redesigning (fencing the area around the church) of the
Armenian Nuroshen Church in Tbilisi.Under the Georgian legislation,
the aforesaid church is a monument of cultural heritage and should
bee protected by the ministry.

As BLACK SEA PRES was told in the organization, the Assembly members
also demand give clarifications concerning the rest of the monuments –
so called disputable Armenian Churches: Surb-Nshan (XVIII century),
Shamkhoretsots-Surb Astvatsatsin (Karmir Avetaran – XVIII century),
Yerevantsots Surb Minas (XVIII century) and Mugni Surb Gevorg
(XIV century).

Members of the organization also addressed the Architecture Service
and the Tbilisi City Hall Supervision Service with a number of
questions concerning building-up of a fence around the Norashen
Church.On December 8, 2008, the Georgian Orthodox Church released a
statement in which it stated that during the meeting in the Georgian
Patriarchate on November 26 the decision had been made to: immediately
stop all works on the territory adjacent to the disputable monument;
address the Ministry of Culture,

Monuments Protection and Sports of Georgia in writing with the request
to assess the current condition of the monument and take all necessary
measures; authorize the bilateral commission to start the actual
work to determine the belonging and background of the aforesaid
monument and draw relevant conclusions based on the historical,
artistic and archeological expertise; to announce bilateral moratorium
with regard to the monument before the final conclusions are made by
the commission. The dispute around the Norashen Church arose in May
last year, when the Georgian Orthodox Church priest, Father Tariel
started to erect the iron fence around the Church together with a
group of workers.