If secular structures remain observers or only wait for steps of  Church, authorities will be in advantageous position - expert 

ArmInfo.  It is wrong to ask the question of what the Armenian Apostolic Church should do in the context of the accusations brought against it by the Armenian authorities. Political scientist, member of the Alternative Projects  Group Vahe Hovhannisyan holds a similar point of view.

In his article, the political scientist draws attention to the fact  that in this new abnormal situation, the right questions are more  important than ever. "We need to ask the right question so that we  can find answers. In my deep conviction, the question "What should  the Church do?" is the wrong question.  The right question is: "What  should secular structures do?" In the first case, we all put  ourselves in the place of observers. In the second case, we become  active participants. As soon as a citizen becomes a party, an active  participant, the topic is closed. Secular structures are obliged to  feel responsible, formulate what they will do, coordinate their  steps. If secular structures remain observers or only wait for the  steps of the Church, then the authorities will be in an advantageous  position, because without a "red line" they will conduct a  discrediting campaign and will try to advance their plan with the  help of state levers, for example, by splitting the Church or  creating new dioceses, etc., etc. There are many options for  ugliness," Vahe Hovhannisyan emphasized.

In his opinion, the situation around the AAC is not a problem of the  church, it is a problem of Armenia, the Armenian people, therefore  the reaction and responses to the attacks of the authorities should  come from secular structures - political, social, educational,  cultural, sports, business, etc., as well as at the individual level,  including from authoritative structures and individuals of the  diaspora.  "This is the right approach. But it requires serious work  and serious coordination," the political scientist believes.

On May 29, at a government meeting, Pashinyan said that Armenian  churches resemble "closets filled with junk." The next day, he  published a harsh post on social networks, in which he used rude  language addressed to the hierarchs of the AAC and accused one of the  archbishops of sexual promiscuity. At the same time, the prime  minister demanded that all priests who violated their vow of celibacy  be defrocked. The Prime Minister's wife Anna Hakobyan made similar  attacks, calling the Patriarch "the main mafioso" and those who  criticized the "silencing" of churches "the main pedophiles of the  country." These statements provoked a sharp reaction from the clergy.  Against the backdrop of the scandal, the Prime Minister proposed  changing the procedure for electing the head of the AAC so that the  state would have a decisive vote in the elections, and candidates  would undergo an ethics check.