Monks involved in the Osiou Avakoum Monastery scandal have selected a new lawyer for their appearance at the Holy Synod court, after their original choice was rejected by the church and another lawyer stepped down, it emerged on Saturday.
The monks’ previous lawyer for church proceedings, Anastasios Vavouskos, continues to assert that the church had no right to deny him the opportunity to represent them.
According to Reporter‘s information, the monks will now be represented by lawyer Socrates Roussides at the hearing scheduled for Monday. Despite the limited time available for him to familiarise himself with the case, Roussides does not intend to request an adjournment. Additionally, the church court has made it clear that the proceedings will move forward as planned.
At the same time, Vavouskos, in a new letter, explains in detail how he can defend the monks before the ecclesiastical court.
According to the report, in his letter Vavouskos among other things states that he will be in the archdiocese and will attend the process, as he explains that he is entitled to do so as a reader belonging to the clergy of the Orthodox Church. This is because, according to the rules of the church, the defence counsel must belong to the Orthodox Church.
In the letter, Vavouskos also relied on documents which he sent himself as the lawyer for the monks and which were accepted by the Investigating Committee and noted that he never ceased to represent his clients.
At the same time, he accused the court, saying that the purpose of a fair trial is not achieved by denying the accused the right to be represented by the lawyer of their choice.
The court has yet to respond to Vavouskos’ claims, and the proceedings are set to continue as scheduled on Monday.
