IV

105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 6

Concerning the protection and continued livelihood of the Eastern Orthodox

Ecumenical Patriarchate.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JANUARY 9, 1997

Mr. BILIRAKIS (for himself, Mr. PORTER, Mrs. MALONEY of New York, Mr.

PAPPAS, Mr. KLINK, Mr. GEKAS, and Mr. ENGEL) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Concerning the protection and continued livelihood of the

Eastern Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarchate.

Whereas in recent years there have been successive terrorist

attempts to desecrate and destroy the premises of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in the Fanar area of Istanbul

(Constantinople), Turkey;

Whereas attempts against the Ecumenical Patriarchate have

intensified, including:

(1) On September 30, 1996, a hand grenade was

thrown into the headquarters of the Eastern Orthodox
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Patriarchate and exploded causing damage to the physical structure of the grounds, most notably the Agios

Georgios Church.

(2) On May 28, 1994, three powerful bombs were

discovered in the living quarters of the Patriarch, and

were subsequently defused only minutes before they were

set to detonate.

(3) In July and August 1993, the Christian Orthodox cemetery in Yenikoy, near Istanbul, was attacked by

vandals and desecrated.

(4) There has been a concerted effort throughout

Turkey to convert the Church of Hagia (Saint) Sophia,

one of the most sacred monuments of Greek Orthodox

Christianity and currently used as a museum, into a

mosque.

(5) The Turkish press and some politicians have

launched a well-orchestrated campaign against the Ecumenical Patriarchate, accusing it of trying to become an

independent state or wishing to revive the Byzantine

Empire. These accusations resulted in provoking dangerous reactions among the Moslem population in Turkey against the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

(6) Negative statements have been directed toward

the Patriarchate by the Mayor of the Fatih District of

Istanbul.
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Whereas His All Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew and those

associated with the Ecumenical Patriarchate are Turkish

citizens and thus must be protected under Turkish law

against blatant and unprovoked attacks toward ethnic

minorities;

Whereas the Turkish Government arbitrarily closed the Halki

Patriarchal School of Theology in 1971;

Whereas the closing of the Halki School of Theology is a serious concern for the Ecumenical Patriarchate;

Whereas Turkish law requires that the Patriarch, as well as

all the clergy, faculty, and students be citizens of Turkey,

and the Halki School of Theology is the only educational

institution for Orthodox Christian leadership;

Whereas the unimpeded continued provocations against the

Ecumenical Patriarchate and the closing of the Halki

School of Theology are in violation of International Treaties to which Turkey has been a signatory, including the

Treaty of Lausanne, the 1968 Protocol, the Helsinki

Final Act-1975, and the Charter of Paris;

Whereas these consequences have severely compromised and

threatened the safety and security of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the future existence of this Orthodox Institution in Turkey;

Whereas the Ecumenical Patriarchate is the spiritual center

for more than 250,000,000 Orthodox Christians worldwide, including approximately 5,000,000 in the United

States; and

Whereas it is in the best interest of the United States to prevent further incidents regarding the Ecumenical Patriarchate and in the overall goals of the United States to
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establish peaceful relations with and among the many important nations of the world that have substantial Orthodox Christian populations: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate

2 concurring), That it is the sense of the Congress that—

3 (1) the United States should use its influence

4 with the Turkish Government and as a permanent

5 member of the United Nations Security Council to

6 suggest that the Turkish Government—

7 (A) ensure proper protection for the Patri8 archate and all Orthodox faithful residing in

9 Turkey;

10 (B) assure that positive steps are taken to

11 reopen the Halki Patriarchal School of Theol12 ogy;

13 (C) provide for the proper protection and

14 safety of the Ecumenical Patriarch and Patri15 archate personnel;

16 (D) establish conditions that would prevent

17 the reccurence of past terrorist activities and

18 vandalism and other personal threats against

19 the Patriarch;

20 (E) establish conditions to ensure that the

21 Patriarchate is free to carry out its religious

22 mission; and
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1 (F) do everything possible to find and pun2 ish the perpetrators of any provocative and ter3 rorist acts against the Patriarchate.

4 (2) The Administration should report to the

5 Congress on the status and progress of the concerns

6 in paragraph (1) on an annual basis.

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