AGBU has prevailed in its appeal of the Conservation Order that the Interior Minister of the Republic of Cyprus had issued in 2004, later upheld by the Council of Ministers, restricting the use of the AGBU Melkonian property in Nicosia.
On December 11, 2006, the Supreme Court of Cyprus (Judicial Review Jurisdiction) rescinded the Conservation Order for lack of justification. The opinion of the Court written by Hon. Justice D. Hadjihambis finds the order excessive in scope and in violation of the principle of proportionality.
The Court has further determined that the Republic of Cyprus has to bear AGBU’s legal costs in the amount of CYPounds 400.
Separately, the Supreme Court of Cyprus (Appellate Jurisdiction) in a unanimous opinion dated December 21, 2006, written by Hon. Judge A. Krambis, has ruled in favor of AGBU in its appeal of an Interlocutory Order that the District Court of Nicosia had issued on February 3, 2006, upholding the petition of His Beatitude Archbishop Mesrob Mutafyan, Armenian Patriarch of Istanbul and All Turkey, to restrain AGBU from selling, alienating, or changing the use of the Melkonian property. Patriarch Mutafyan was seeking a declaratory judgment that the Melkonian property was held by AGBU “in trust” and “the re-registration of the said property in his name as trustee for the Armenians all over the world.”
The Supreme Court of Cyprus has recognized AGBU’s full ownership rights to the property. Quoting extensively from the relevant parts of the Deed of Transfer of 1926, the Court states that AGBU’s “ownership of the [Melkonian property] and the right of disposal etc…..was without the conditions and restrictions invoked by the Respondent.”
The Interlocutory Order of the District Court of Nicosia was set aside and dismissed. The Supreme Court of Cyprus has determined that the Respondent, His Beatitude Patriarch Mesrob Mutafyan, must pay AGBU the costs of the first instance proceedings and the costs of the appeal.
Established in 1906, AGBU (www.agbu.org) is the world’s largest non-profit Armenian organization. Headquartered in New York City with an annual budget of $36 million, AGBU preserves and promotes the Armenian identity and heritage through educational, cultural and humanitarian programs, annually serving some 400,000 Armenians in 35 countries.
To view the press release in Armenian, please click on the following link: http://www.agbu.org/pdfs/AGBU_MEI_decision.pdf
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