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US Department of State
Armenia: International Religious Freedom Report 2007
Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
The Constitution as amended in December 2005 provides for freedom of
religion; however, the law places some restrictions on the religious
freedom of adherents of minority religious groups, and there were some
restrictions in practice. The Armenian (Apostolic) Church, which has
formal legal status as the national church, enjoys some privileges not
available to other religious groups.
There was no change in the status of respect for religious freedom by
the Government during the reporting period. Some denominations
reported occasional discrimination by mid- or low-level government
officials but found high-level officials to be tolerant. Jehovah's
Witnesses reported that judges sentenced them to longer prison terms
for evasion of alternative military service than in the past, although
the sentences were still within the range allowed by law.
Societal attitudes toward some minority religious groups were
ambivalent, and there were reports of societal discrimination directed
against members of these groups.
The U.S. Government discusses religious freedom issues with the
Government as part of its overall policy to promote human rights.
Section I. Religious Demography
The country has an area of 11,500 square miles and a population of 3
million.
Approximately 98 percent of the population is ethnic Armenian. As a
result of Soviet-era policies, the number of active religious
practitioners is relatively low, but the link between Armenian
ethnicity and the Armenian Church is strong. An estimated 90 percent
of citizens nominally belong to the Armenian Church, an independent
Eastern Christian denomination with its spiritual center at the
Etchmiadzin cathedral and monastery. The head of the church is
Catholicos Garegin (Karekin) II.
There are small communities of other religious groups. There was no
reliable census data on religious minorities, and estimates from
congregants varied significantly. The Catholic Church, both Roman and
Mekhitarist (Armenian Uniate), estimated 120,000 followers. The
Jehovah's Witnesses estimated their membership at 9,000. Groups that
constitute less than 5 percent of the population include Yezidis, an
ethnic Kurd cultural group whose religion includes elements derived
from Zoroastrianism, Islam, and animism; unspecified "charismatic"
Christians; the Armenian Evangelical Church; Molokans, an ethnic
Russian pacifist Christian group that split from the Russian Orthodox
Church in the 17th-century; Baptists; the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints (Mormons); Orthodox Christians; Seventh-day
Adventists; Pentecostals; Jews; and Baha'is. Levels of membership in
minority religious groups remained relatively unchanged. There was no
estimate of the number of atheists.
Yezidis are concentrated primarily in agricultural areas around Mount
Aragats, northwest of the capital Yerevan. Armenian Catholics live
mainly in the northern region, while most Jews, Mormons, Baha'is, and
Orthodox Christians reside in Yerevan. In Yerevan there is also a
small community of Muslims, including Kurds, Iranians, and temporary
residents from the Middle East.
Foreign missionary groups are active in the country.
Section II. Status of Religious Freedom
Legal/Policy Framework
The Constitution as amended in 2005 provides for freedom of religion
and the right to practice, choose, or change religious belief. It
recognizes "the exclusive mission of the Armenian Church as a national
church in the spiritual life, development of the national culture, and
preservation of the national identity of the people of Armenia." The
law places some restrictions on the religious freedom of religious
groups other than the Armenian Church. The Law on Freedom of
Conscience establishes the separation of church and state but grants
the Armenian Church official status as the national church.
Extended negotiations between the Government and the Armenian Church
resulted in a 2000 framework for the two sides to negotiate a
concordat. The negotiations resulted in the signing of a law March 14,
2007, that codified the church's role.
The law establishes confessor-penitent confidentiality, makes the
church's marriage rite legally binding, and assigns the church and the
state joint responsibility to preserve national historic churches. The
law does not grant the church tax-exempt status or establish any state
funding for the church. The law formally recognizes the role that the
Armenian Church already plays in society, since most citizens see the
church as an integral part of national identity, history, and cultural
heritage. January 6, the day on which the Armenian Church celebrates
Christmas, is a national holiday.
The law does not mandate registration of nongovernmental organizations
(NGOs), including religious groups; however, only registered
organizations have legal status. Only registered groups may publish
newspapers or magazines, rent meeting places, broadcast programs on
television or radio, or officially sponsor the visas of visitors,
although there is no prohibition on individual members doing so. There
were no reports of the Government refusing registration to religious
groups that qualified for registration under the law. To qualify for
registration, religious organizations must "be free from materialism
and of a purely spiritual nature," and must subscribe to a doctrine
based on "historically recognized holy scriptures." The Office of the
State Registrar registers religious entities. The Department of
Religious Affairs and National Minorities oversees religious affairs
and performs a consultative role in the registration process. A
religious organization must have at least 200 adult members to
register. By the end of the reporting period, the Government had
registered 63 religious organizations, including individual
congregations within the same denomination.
According to the Department of Religious Affairs and National
Minorities, some minority religious groups, including the Molokans and
some Yezidi groups, have not sought registration. Although it was not
registered as a religious facility, Yerevan's sole mosque was open for
regular Friday prayers, and the Government did not restrict Muslims
from praying there.
The Law on Education mandates that public schools offer a secular
education but does not prohibit religious education in state
schools. Only personnel authorized and trained by the Government may
teach in public schools. Classes in religious history are part of the
public school curriculum and are taught by teachers. The history of
the Armenian Church is the basis of this curriculum; many schools
teach about world religions in elementary school and the history of
the Armenian Church in middle school. Religious groups may not provide
religious instruction in schools, although registered groups may do so
in private homes to children of their members. The use of public
school buildings for religious "indoctrination" is illegal.
The law on alternative military service allows conscientious
objectors, subject to government panel approval, to perform either
noncombatant military or civilian service duties rather than serve as
combat-trained military personnel. The law took effect in 2004 and
applied to subsequent draftees and those serving prison terms for
draft evasion. An amendment to the law on military service that took
effect in January 2006 criminalizes evasion of alternative labor
service. Conscientious objectors maintained, however, that military
control of the alternative labor service amounted to unacceptable
military service.
The military employs Armenian Church chaplains for each division, but
no other religious groups are represented in the military
chaplaincy. The Armenian Church runs a prison ministry program but
does not have permanent representatives in prisons. The Armenian
Evangelical Church has chaplains in seven prisons.
The Government's human rights ombudsman and the head of the Department
of Religious Affairs and National Minorities met with minority
religious organizations during the reporting period.
Restrictions on Religious Freedom
The law places some restrictions on the religious freedom of adherents
of minority religious groups, and there were some restrictions in
practice.
The Law on Freedom of Conscience prohibits "proselytizing" but does
not define it. The prohibition applies to all groups, including the
Armenian Church. Most registered religious groups reported no serious
legal impediments to their activities during the reporting period.
Although the law prohibits foreign funding of foreign-based
denominations, the Government did not enforce the ban and considered
it unenforceable.
During the reporting period, the Jehovah's Witnesses and Seventh-day
Adventists reported that low-level government officials denied them
the use of public space for religious gatherings. However, the
Jehovah's Witnesses noted that, in general, they were free to assemble
without harassment by police or other government entities.
A customs issue pertaining to the Jehovah's Witnesses ability to
obtain shipments of religious literature was not resolved at the end
of the reporting period. On March 29, 2007, customs officials in
Yerevan reevaluated a shipment of religious periodicals received by
the Jehovah's Witnesses at a significantly higher rate than the group
expected, making it financially difficult for them to arrange
clearance of the shipment. Customs officials maintained that the
reevaluation complied with the customs code.
At the end of the reporting period, the Jehovah's Witnesses reported
that following complaints to high-ranking officials, the military
commissariat had issued certificates of registration (necessary for
obtaining passports) to the majority of a group of Witnesses who had
completed prison sentences for conscientious objection to military
service.
Abuses of Religious Freedom
According to leaders of Jehovah's Witnesses in Yerevan, as of the end
of the reporting period, 69 Witnesses remained in prison for refusal,
on conscientious and religious grounds, to perform military service or
alternative labor service. Two additional members were awaiting
trial. Representatives of the Jehovah's Witnesses stated that all of
the prisoners were given the opportunity to serve an alternative to
military service rather than prison time, but that all refused because
the military retained administrative control of alternative service.
Jehovah's Witnesses complained that the courts handed down tougher
sentences for evasion of alternative labor service during the
reporting period. In the period covered by this report, of the 48
Jehovah's Witnesses sentenced, 24 received 30-month sentences and 5
received 36-month sentences, the maximum allowed by law. Of the
remaining 19 Jehovah's Witnesses sentenced during the reporting
period, 15 received sentences ranging between 22 and 27 months, and 4
received 18-month sentences. Of 36 Jehovah's Witnesses convicted
during the previous reporting period, only 1 received a 30-month
sentence, and none received 36-month sentences; the majority were
sentenced to either 18 or 24 months of imprisonment.
Unlike during the previous reporting period, there were no reports
that military hazing of new conscripts was more severe for minority
group members. Yezidi representatives reported no harassment or
discrimination.
During the reporting period there was no reported officially sponsored
violence against minority religious groups. Other than Jehovah's
Witnesses who were conscientious objectors, there were no reports of
religious prisoners or detainees in the country.
Forced Religious Conversion
There were no reports of forced religious conversion, including of
minor U.S. citizens who had been abducted or illegally removed from
the United States, or of the refusal to allow such citizens to be
returned to the United States.
Improvements and Positive Developments in Respect for Religious
Freedom
Nineteen Jehovah's Witnesses who had begun and then abandoned
alternative military service were acquitted, and criminal proceedings
against them were terminated by a decision of the Prosecutor General
on September 12, 2006. The individuals were charged with desertion or
absence without leave. Seven of the 19 had been in pretrial detention
or agreed not to leave the country before their trials at the time of
their acquittal. The others had received sentences ranging from 2 to 3
years in prison and served between 5 and 9 months of their sentences.
On October 27, 2006, Yerevan's Holocaust memorial, which had been
inexplicably vandalized earlier in the year, was replaced and
rededicated to the memory of both Jews and Armenians who had been the
victims of "heinous crimes." A gesture of respect and national
empathy, the memorial was erected with the cooperation of
international donors, the Jewish community, Armenian Diaspora
organizations, and the Government.
Section III. Societal Abuses and Discrimination
Societal attitudes toward most minority religious groups were
ambivalent. Many citizens are not religiously observant, but the link
between Armenian ethnicity and the Armenian Church is strong.
According to some observers, the general population expressed negative
attitudes about Jehovah's Witnesses because the latter refused to
serve in the military, engaged in little-understood proselytizing
practices, and because of a widespread but unsubstantiated belief that
they pay the desperately poor to convert. Jehovah's Witnesses
continued to be targets of hostile sermons by some Armenian Church
clerics and experienced occasional societal discrimination. Unlike in
the previous reporting period, the press did not report complaints of
allegedly illegal proselytizing lodged by citizens against members of
Jehovah's Witnesses.
On June 1, 2007, in the village of Lusarat, a passing Armenian
Apostolic priest verbally harassed and assaulted two Jehovah's
Witnesses having a Bible discussion with a woman in the central
square. While the Witnesses agreed to drop assault charges pending the
priest's apology, none was forthcoming. Police closed the case for
lack of evidence after the priest denied the incident.
Two Jehovah's Witnesses filed a complaint with local police after they
were allegedly threatened by a man with a pistol while they engaged in
public ministry on April 15, 2007. Police did not investigate the
incident, citing lack of evidence.
At the end of the reporting period, a Witness dropped his case against
a co-worker who had attacked him. Police had taken no action on the
matter. On March 29, 2007, the co-worker had attempted to choke the
Witness at their place of work after discovering that the latter was a
member of the religious group.
The group also reported that an Armenian Church priest assaulted two
female Jehovah's Witnesses on August 21, 2006. According to the group,
one of the victims suffered a broken arm. Police refused to initiate
an investigation, in part because the priest expressed remorse, and
the women were unable to appeal the decision.
In isolated incidents, some members of the press stoked suspicion of
"nontraditional" religious organizations. On February 14, 2007, online
news source Panorama published an article based on an e-mail from a
reader that accused several famous Armenian singers and a television
commentator of being "followers of religious sects." On February 13,
2007, online news source A1+ published an article warning readers
about "false Bibles" distributed by "sectarian organizations."
The Jewish community reported no incidents of verbal harassment during
the reporting period. In the summer and fall of 2006, a number of
spray-painted swastikas of unknown origin, accompanied by the words
"No Arabs," "Sieg Heil," and "Russians out of our country," were
observed on kiosks and construction site walls in downtown Yerevan;
the symbols appeared to express general xenophobia.
Section IV. U.S. Government Policy
The U.S. Government discusses religious freedom issues with the
Government as part of its overall policy to promote human
rights. During these discussions, the U.S. Government emphasized to
authorities that continued eligibility for the $235 million
(approximately 79 billion AMD) Millennium Challenge Compact remained
contingent upon the Government's performance in meeting good
governance indicators, which include standards of respect for
religious freedom. Embassy officials maintained close contact with the
Catholicos at Etchmiadzin and with leaders of other religious and
ecumenical groups in the country. The Embassy maintained regular
contact with resident and visiting regional representatives of
foreign-based religious groups such as Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses,
and the Baha'is, and raised their concerns with the Government when
necessary. Embassy officials closely monitored trials related to
issues of religious freedom and took an active role in policy forums
and NGO roundtables regarding religious freedom.
Leaders of local minority religious groups were regularly welcomed at
embassy events.
Released on September 14, 2007
Armenia: International Religious Freedom Report 2007
Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
The Constitution as amended in December 2005 provides for freedom of
religion; however, the law places some restrictions on the religious
freedom of adherents of minority religious groups, and there were some
restrictions in practice. The Armenian (Apostolic) Church, which has
formal legal status as the national church, enjoys some privileges not
available to other religious groups.
There was no change in the status of respect for religious freedom by
the Government during the reporting period. Some denominations
reported occasional discrimination by mid- or low-level government
officials but found high-level officials to be tolerant. Jehovah's
Witnesses reported that judges sentenced them to longer prison terms
for evasion of alternative military service than in the past, although
the sentences were still within the range allowed by law.
Societal attitudes toward some minority religious groups were
ambivalent, and there were reports of societal discrimination directed
against members of these groups.
The U.S. Government discusses religious freedom issues with the
Government as part of its overall policy to promote human rights.
Section I. Religious Demography
The country has an area of 11,500 square miles and a population of 3
million.
Approximately 98 percent of the population is ethnic Armenian. As a
result of Soviet-era policies, the number of active religious
practitioners is relatively low, but the link between Armenian
ethnicity and the Armenian Church is strong. An estimated 90 percent
of citizens nominally belong to the Armenian Church, an independent
Eastern Christian denomination with its spiritual center at the
Etchmiadzin cathedral and monastery. The head of the church is
Catholicos Garegin (Karekin) II.
There are small communities of other religious groups. There was no
reliable census data on religious minorities, and estimates from
congregants varied significantly. The Catholic Church, both Roman and
Mekhitarist (Armenian Uniate), estimated 120,000 followers. The
Jehovah's Witnesses estimated their membership at 9,000. Groups that
constitute less than 5 percent of the population include Yezidis, an
ethnic Kurd cultural group whose religion includes elements derived
from Zoroastrianism, Islam, and animism; unspecified "charismatic"
Christians; the Armenian Evangelical Church; Molokans, an ethnic
Russian pacifist Christian group that split from the Russian Orthodox
Church in the 17th-century; Baptists; the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints (Mormons); Orthodox Christians; Seventh-day
Adventists; Pentecostals; Jews; and Baha'is. Levels of membership in
minority religious groups remained relatively unchanged. There was no
estimate of the number of atheists.
Yezidis are concentrated primarily in agricultural areas around Mount
Aragats, northwest of the capital Yerevan. Armenian Catholics live
mainly in the northern region, while most Jews, Mormons, Baha'is, and
Orthodox Christians reside in Yerevan. In Yerevan there is also a
small community of Muslims, including Kurds, Iranians, and temporary
residents from the Middle East.
Foreign missionary groups are active in the country.
Section II. Status of Religious Freedom
Legal/Policy Framework
The Constitution as amended in 2005 provides for freedom of religion
and the right to practice, choose, or change religious belief. It
recognizes "the exclusive mission of the Armenian Church as a national
church in the spiritual life, development of the national culture, and
preservation of the national identity of the people of Armenia." The
law places some restrictions on the religious freedom of religious
groups other than the Armenian Church. The Law on Freedom of
Conscience establishes the separation of church and state but grants
the Armenian Church official status as the national church.
Extended negotiations between the Government and the Armenian Church
resulted in a 2000 framework for the two sides to negotiate a
concordat. The negotiations resulted in the signing of a law March 14,
2007, that codified the church's role.
The law establishes confessor-penitent confidentiality, makes the
church's marriage rite legally binding, and assigns the church and the
state joint responsibility to preserve national historic churches. The
law does not grant the church tax-exempt status or establish any state
funding for the church. The law formally recognizes the role that the
Armenian Church already plays in society, since most citizens see the
church as an integral part of national identity, history, and cultural
heritage. January 6, the day on which the Armenian Church celebrates
Christmas, is a national holiday.
The law does not mandate registration of nongovernmental organizations
(NGOs), including religious groups; however, only registered
organizations have legal status. Only registered groups may publish
newspapers or magazines, rent meeting places, broadcast programs on
television or radio, or officially sponsor the visas of visitors,
although there is no prohibition on individual members doing so. There
were no reports of the Government refusing registration to religious
groups that qualified for registration under the law. To qualify for
registration, religious organizations must "be free from materialism
and of a purely spiritual nature," and must subscribe to a doctrine
based on "historically recognized holy scriptures." The Office of the
State Registrar registers religious entities. The Department of
Religious Affairs and National Minorities oversees religious affairs
and performs a consultative role in the registration process. A
religious organization must have at least 200 adult members to
register. By the end of the reporting period, the Government had
registered 63 religious organizations, including individual
congregations within the same denomination.
According to the Department of Religious Affairs and National
Minorities, some minority religious groups, including the Molokans and
some Yezidi groups, have not sought registration. Although it was not
registered as a religious facility, Yerevan's sole mosque was open for
regular Friday prayers, and the Government did not restrict Muslims
from praying there.
The Law on Education mandates that public schools offer a secular
education but does not prohibit religious education in state
schools. Only personnel authorized and trained by the Government may
teach in public schools. Classes in religious history are part of the
public school curriculum and are taught by teachers. The history of
the Armenian Church is the basis of this curriculum; many schools
teach about world religions in elementary school and the history of
the Armenian Church in middle school. Religious groups may not provide
religious instruction in schools, although registered groups may do so
in private homes to children of their members. The use of public
school buildings for religious "indoctrination" is illegal.
The law on alternative military service allows conscientious
objectors, subject to government panel approval, to perform either
noncombatant military or civilian service duties rather than serve as
combat-trained military personnel. The law took effect in 2004 and
applied to subsequent draftees and those serving prison terms for
draft evasion. An amendment to the law on military service that took
effect in January 2006 criminalizes evasion of alternative labor
service. Conscientious objectors maintained, however, that military
control of the alternative labor service amounted to unacceptable
military service.
The military employs Armenian Church chaplains for each division, but
no other religious groups are represented in the military
chaplaincy. The Armenian Church runs a prison ministry program but
does not have permanent representatives in prisons. The Armenian
Evangelical Church has chaplains in seven prisons.
The Government's human rights ombudsman and the head of the Department
of Religious Affairs and National Minorities met with minority
religious organizations during the reporting period.
Restrictions on Religious Freedom
The law places some restrictions on the religious freedom of adherents
of minority religious groups, and there were some restrictions in
practice.
The Law on Freedom of Conscience prohibits "proselytizing" but does
not define it. The prohibition applies to all groups, including the
Armenian Church. Most registered religious groups reported no serious
legal impediments to their activities during the reporting period.
Although the law prohibits foreign funding of foreign-based
denominations, the Government did not enforce the ban and considered
it unenforceable.
During the reporting period, the Jehovah's Witnesses and Seventh-day
Adventists reported that low-level government officials denied them
the use of public space for religious gatherings. However, the
Jehovah's Witnesses noted that, in general, they were free to assemble
without harassment by police or other government entities.
A customs issue pertaining to the Jehovah's Witnesses ability to
obtain shipments of religious literature was not resolved at the end
of the reporting period. On March 29, 2007, customs officials in
Yerevan reevaluated a shipment of religious periodicals received by
the Jehovah's Witnesses at a significantly higher rate than the group
expected, making it financially difficult for them to arrange
clearance of the shipment. Customs officials maintained that the
reevaluation complied with the customs code.
At the end of the reporting period, the Jehovah's Witnesses reported
that following complaints to high-ranking officials, the military
commissariat had issued certificates of registration (necessary for
obtaining passports) to the majority of a group of Witnesses who had
completed prison sentences for conscientious objection to military
service.
Abuses of Religious Freedom
According to leaders of Jehovah's Witnesses in Yerevan, as of the end
of the reporting period, 69 Witnesses remained in prison for refusal,
on conscientious and religious grounds, to perform military service or
alternative labor service. Two additional members were awaiting
trial. Representatives of the Jehovah's Witnesses stated that all of
the prisoners were given the opportunity to serve an alternative to
military service rather than prison time, but that all refused because
the military retained administrative control of alternative service.
Jehovah's Witnesses complained that the courts handed down tougher
sentences for evasion of alternative labor service during the
reporting period. In the period covered by this report, of the 48
Jehovah's Witnesses sentenced, 24 received 30-month sentences and 5
received 36-month sentences, the maximum allowed by law. Of the
remaining 19 Jehovah's Witnesses sentenced during the reporting
period, 15 received sentences ranging between 22 and 27 months, and 4
received 18-month sentences. Of 36 Jehovah's Witnesses convicted
during the previous reporting period, only 1 received a 30-month
sentence, and none received 36-month sentences; the majority were
sentenced to either 18 or 24 months of imprisonment.
Unlike during the previous reporting period, there were no reports
that military hazing of new conscripts was more severe for minority
group members. Yezidi representatives reported no harassment or
discrimination.
During the reporting period there was no reported officially sponsored
violence against minority religious groups. Other than Jehovah's
Witnesses who were conscientious objectors, there were no reports of
religious prisoners or detainees in the country.
Forced Religious Conversion
There were no reports of forced religious conversion, including of
minor U.S. citizens who had been abducted or illegally removed from
the United States, or of the refusal to allow such citizens to be
returned to the United States.
Improvements and Positive Developments in Respect for Religious
Freedom
Nineteen Jehovah's Witnesses who had begun and then abandoned
alternative military service were acquitted, and criminal proceedings
against them were terminated by a decision of the Prosecutor General
on September 12, 2006. The individuals were charged with desertion or
absence without leave. Seven of the 19 had been in pretrial detention
or agreed not to leave the country before their trials at the time of
their acquittal. The others had received sentences ranging from 2 to 3
years in prison and served between 5 and 9 months of their sentences.
On October 27, 2006, Yerevan's Holocaust memorial, which had been
inexplicably vandalized earlier in the year, was replaced and
rededicated to the memory of both Jews and Armenians who had been the
victims of "heinous crimes." A gesture of respect and national
empathy, the memorial was erected with the cooperation of
international donors, the Jewish community, Armenian Diaspora
organizations, and the Government.
Section III. Societal Abuses and Discrimination
Societal attitudes toward most minority religious groups were
ambivalent. Many citizens are not religiously observant, but the link
between Armenian ethnicity and the Armenian Church is strong.
According to some observers, the general population expressed negative
attitudes about Jehovah's Witnesses because the latter refused to
serve in the military, engaged in little-understood proselytizing
practices, and because of a widespread but unsubstantiated belief that
they pay the desperately poor to convert. Jehovah's Witnesses
continued to be targets of hostile sermons by some Armenian Church
clerics and experienced occasional societal discrimination. Unlike in
the previous reporting period, the press did not report complaints of
allegedly illegal proselytizing lodged by citizens against members of
Jehovah's Witnesses.
On June 1, 2007, in the village of Lusarat, a passing Armenian
Apostolic priest verbally harassed and assaulted two Jehovah's
Witnesses having a Bible discussion with a woman in the central
square. While the Witnesses agreed to drop assault charges pending the
priest's apology, none was forthcoming. Police closed the case for
lack of evidence after the priest denied the incident.
Two Jehovah's Witnesses filed a complaint with local police after they
were allegedly threatened by a man with a pistol while they engaged in
public ministry on April 15, 2007. Police did not investigate the
incident, citing lack of evidence.
At the end of the reporting period, a Witness dropped his case against
a co-worker who had attacked him. Police had taken no action on the
matter. On March 29, 2007, the co-worker had attempted to choke the
Witness at their place of work after discovering that the latter was a
member of the religious group.
The group also reported that an Armenian Church priest assaulted two
female Jehovah's Witnesses on August 21, 2006. According to the group,
one of the victims suffered a broken arm. Police refused to initiate
an investigation, in part because the priest expressed remorse, and
the women were unable to appeal the decision.
In isolated incidents, some members of the press stoked suspicion of
"nontraditional" religious organizations. On February 14, 2007, online
news source Panorama published an article based on an e-mail from a
reader that accused several famous Armenian singers and a television
commentator of being "followers of religious sects." On February 13,
2007, online news source A1+ published an article warning readers
about "false Bibles" distributed by "sectarian organizations."
The Jewish community reported no incidents of verbal harassment during
the reporting period. In the summer and fall of 2006, a number of
spray-painted swastikas of unknown origin, accompanied by the words
"No Arabs," "Sieg Heil," and "Russians out of our country," were
observed on kiosks and construction site walls in downtown Yerevan;
the symbols appeared to express general xenophobia.
Section IV. U.S. Government Policy
The U.S. Government discusses religious freedom issues with the
Government as part of its overall policy to promote human
rights. During these discussions, the U.S. Government emphasized to
authorities that continued eligibility for the $235 million
(approximately 79 billion AMD) Millennium Challenge Compact remained
contingent upon the Government's performance in meeting good
governance indicators, which include standards of respect for
religious freedom. Embassy officials maintained close contact with the
Catholicos at Etchmiadzin and with leaders of other religious and
ecumenical groups in the country. The Embassy maintained regular
contact with resident and visiting regional representatives of
foreign-based religious groups such as Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses,
and the Baha'is, and raised their concerns with the Government when
necessary. Embassy officials closely monitored trials related to
issues of religious freedom and took an active role in policy forums
and NGO roundtables regarding religious freedom.
Leaders of local minority religious groups were regularly welcomed at
embassy events.
Released on September 14, 2007