Appeal at Istanbul Court seeks guardian for Armenian Patriarch

PanARMENIAN.Net - An application to Istanbul Court of Peace has been submitted for the appointment of a guardian for Patriarch Mutafyan, Asbarez reports citing Agos weekly.

The request of Tatyos Bebek, Artin Mezedur, Nazaret Binatli and Harut Ozer was presented to the court by lawyer Arin Manca. Including three explanatory points, the petition is accepted by the court and states that Patriarch Mutafyan has been under incapacity for 9 years because of his illness.

A medical report certifying that the Patriarch is suffering from Frontotemporal dementia is also presented to the court. This development was covered by the international media and duscussed with the Armenian community.

“The lawyers say that a guardian should have been appointed when our Patriarch was diagnosed with this illness,” Bebek said. “We don’t know why this hasn’t been done till now. People say that if a patriarch cannot perform his duty for 7 years, the seat should be considered as vacant.”

In 2010, Archbishop Aram Ateshyan applied for a “co-Patriarch” election, but the Interior Ministry rejected the appeal on the grounds that “no election can be organized as long as the Patriarch is alive.” Reminding this incident, Bebek said: “First of all, when a guardian is appointed, this argument becomes invalid, because a person with a legal guardian cannot be considered alive.”

In the petition, Mutafyan’s mother is pointed as the most eligible guardian and if she doesn’t accept it, the court appoints a guardian. Tatyos Bebek also stated that a guardian and a trustee are two different positions and a guardian can have a right of disposition if only there is a court order.