Saakashvili promises to address Norashen problem

PanARMENIAN.Net - Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili assured Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan that he will address the problem of Norashen Armenian Church in Tbilisi.



"This is a matter of principle for us. I requested the Georgian President to interfere and he promised to personally address the problem," the Armenian PM told reporters on Tuesday.



Encroachments on Norashen Armenian Church started in 1994.



The latest incident took place on November 16, 2008, when Georgian monk Tariel Sikinchelashvili instructed workers to raze to the ground the graves of Mikhail and Lidia Tamamshevs.



This barbarian act outraged Armenians, who demanded to let the graves in their place.



Upon arrival of representatives of the Armenian Apostolic Church and parliament member Van Bayburt, the Georgian monk said he just wanted to replace the gravestones to "clean under them."