IN HR0058

Urges the Turkish government to cease discrimination against the Ecumenical Patriarchate of the Orthodox Christian Church, located in Istanbul and led by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.

Notes Turkey has restricted eligibility for the office of ecumenical patriarch to Turkish nationals only, confiscated approximately 94 percent of the Patriarchate's properties, and imposed a 42 percent retroactive tax on a charity hospital.

Highlights the Turkish government has not reopened the Theological School on the island of Halki, closed in 1971, impeding training for Orthodox Christian clergy.

States Turkey's treatment of the Ecumenical Patriarchate is inconsistent with European Union membership criteria requiring respect for minorities and human rights, and affects Orthodox Christians in Indiana and throughout the United States.

Directs the Indiana House Principal Clerk to transmit the resolution to the President of the United States, the U.S. ambassador to Turkey, and the Turkish ambassador to the United States.