Phanar’s archons award Navalny's wife

Archbishop Elpidophoros, Yulia Navalnaya, Anthony Limberakis. Photo: archons.org

On October 19, with the blessing of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, the Athenagoras Human Rights Award was presented to Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of martyred Russian hero Alexei Navalny and now herself the leader of the Russian opposition, in New York, reports Archons.org.

The Archons stated that "Yulia Navalnaya is one of the most courageous individuals on the planet. Her painful personal experience of losing her husband because he stood up to a tyrant is a vivid illustration of the human cost of authoritarian rule and the denial of basic freedoms."

According to Anthony Limberakis, the head of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, Navalnaya is the "conscience of the international community", and "with a prophetic voice, she has called upon it to show its commitment to freedom and take decisive action against what she has not hesitated to call the criminal regime in Moscow."

Established in 1986, the Athenagoras Human Rights Award is given in honor of Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras, who served as Archbishop of the Americas for 18 years before being elected Ecumenical Patriarch in 1948. He was universally acknowledged as a visionary leader and worked for peace among Churches and people throughout his life.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that Epifaniy was presented with the Athenagoras Human Rights Award in the U.S. for his commitment to religious freedom.

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