The Turkish Media Continues to Cover the Story of the Case Presented to the Turkish Constitutional Court by the Catholicosate of Cilicia Demanding the Return of Its Historical See
www.armenianorthodoxchurch.org – March April 2016
On 21 March 2016, “Haber Turk” interviewed Cem Sofuoglu, the Turkish lawyer representing the Catholicosate of Cilicia at the Constitutional Court of Turkey. In response to the questions of the journalist, Sofuoglu explained the reasons for the litigation and said that if the Turkish Constitutional Court rejects the case, the Catholicosate will go to the European Court of Human Rights. He also revealed that His Holiness Aram I refused any offer for negotiations. The Catholicos demanded the return of the properties that have belonged to the Church for over 800 years; Sofuoglu reported that His Holiness Aram I’s view that a positive response by the Constitutional Court would demonstrate Turkey’s goodwill towards rapprochement with Armenians.
The interview was echoed in international, Turkish and Armenian media as well as in the diaspora.
