Archbishop Bagrat demands full release of alleged recording

PanARMENIAN.Net - From Yerevan-Kentron penitentiary, Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, leader of the Sacred Struggle movement, addressed the controversy surrounding an alleged audio recording attributed to him, demanding that the competent authorities publish the full context of the conversation.

He argues that the fragment in question is “cut and edited,” taken out of a context that related to “a discussion on the functioning of government power.”

“Publish it… On the 8th of the month, a hooligan mob attacked a dignified and patriotic Armenian—Artur Sargsyan—in Parliament. This was inevitable, as for a year now they’ve been trying to shake the determination of our movement with vile slander and assaults.

You will not succeed. Worse—you will fall.

But the reason for this letter is not the slanderous and false declarations made in Parliament with an ‘angelic air of innocence,’ which violate the presumption of innocence and will be addressed one by one in court. The reason is the notorious statement attributed to me—about ‘shooting two people and imprisoning fifteen’—portrayed as some criminal plan of mass murder.

I won’t even contest the authenticity of the audio now—that will be clarified on another level. But first, how can someone with no authority imprison 15 people, especially within the logic of a street protest? It’s simply laughable…

I demand the competent bodies release the full context of this conversation. I insist that the edited fragment was taken from a different context and referred to a function of government authority.

Once again, I demand the full transcript of this conversation be published. Otherwise, all such statements will remain your responsibility as lies and slander,” reads the letter, signed: “Prisoner of the Homeland, Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan.”

On the morning of June 25, law enforcement began conducting searches at addresses linked to supporters of the Sacred Struggle movement. The Investigative Committee stated that members and leaders of the movement were planning to carry out terrorist acts and actions aimed at seizing power in Armenia. Later, it was announced that Archbishop Galstanyan had been detained for two months, along with 14 others.