21.05.2016

In the courtroom of the court of first instance The police put handcuffs on Archbishop Jovan in front of the cameras

On this day, four years ago, the police intruded several monasteries of the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric, as well as the homes of some of its members, and following the orders of the state government, it demonstrated unseen brutality by physically attacking nuns, by confiscating everything that it could take from the monasteries – for example, despite not having the warrant for that, it took the registration books of the baptized and married believers (something that was not happening even in the totalitarian systems) and has not yet returned those books, by putting handcuffs on parents in front of their minor children, and so forth.

Police puts handcuffs on nuns, before the cameras Police puts handcuffs on monks, before the cameras

During this state persecution on religious basis, Archbishop Jovan of Ohrid and Metropolitan of Skopje, although he already was imprisoned and had no possibility to avoid presence in the court, he was still transferred to the detention prison, in much stricter conditions. This decision of the authorities was by many organizations for protection of human rights and religious freedoms, characterized as exercising torture upon Archbishop Jovan.

At the same time, Bishop Marko of Bregalnica and Bishop David of Stobi, other priests, monastics and believers of the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric, a total of 18 persons, had their passports taken by the authorities and were obliged to regularly appear in the court.

Among other things, our homeland is, in the international reports, ranked among the partially free countries, which are far from the advanced democracies, also due to this persecution on religious basis.

The state persecution on religious basis against Archbishop Jovan of Ohrid and the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishoric began 14 years ago, with imprisonments and denial of registration of the Chruch and with continuous, rigged court processes.

Brutal police intrusion into the monasteries of the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric Brutal police intrusion into the monasteries of the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric Depositing the passports in the court of first instance

On this day, four years ago, the latest court persecution began. Four years afterwards, this court process is still ongoing, and the next hearing is scheduled for the beginning of June.