Tigran Abrahamyan, a Member of Parliament from the I Have Honor faction, stated on Facebook that a "group of deniers" is preparing to storm the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin in a live broadcast.
He emphasized the need to resist and prevent the authorities from executing their “scripted scenario,” calling for each stage of their “nation-destructive plan” to be disrupted and derailed.
“The purpose of this sect of heretics is to generate public hatred and hostility toward the Catholicos and the Mother See. The culminating phase will be a mass gathering at the central square of Etchmiadzin.
According to the plan, the group will attempt a live-streamed incursion into the Catholicos’ residence, using mockery, persecution, and false piety to exert pressure on senior clergy and the Catholicos of All Armenians.
To reach the residence, security forces will first isolate the people gathered in defense of the Mother See. If necessary, clashes between various public groups will be incited, in an attempt to push for the Catholicos’ resignation.
Naturally, the authorities will try to shift blame for any provocation or its consequences onto the Church, escalating attacks against it.
It is the responsibility of society’s healthy segment to resist by all lawful means, focusing especially on gaining informational and political advantage and delivering vital messages to domestic and international audiences.
Most importantly, the authorities will concentrate their primary resources on psychological and propaganda attacks. Without success in this domain, their other moves cannot be effective.
We must stand firm and block each stage of their plan—preventing this catastrophic scheme from being 'cooked' and brought to completion,” his post concludes.
At a recent press conference, when asked how the government intends to “liberate the Catholicosate,” Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan replied: “We’ll liberate the Mother See the same way we liberated Armenia from Serzh Sargsyan in 2018.” He later called for a “Great Spiritual Gathering at the central square of Etchmiadzin.”
