PATRIARCH ARRESTED

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28765, 10 December 1958, Page 15

PATRIARCH ARRESTED

Anti-Church Move In Rumania

(N.Z. Press Assoctation—CopyrtoMi VIENNA, December 8. The Patriarch of the'Rumanian Orthodox Church (Marina Justinian) has been placed tinder “house arrest”by the Communist police authorities, According to reports reaching Vienna today and quoted by British United Press. He is said to have been whisked away from his Bucharest residence and taken to an undisclosed province, where he is being watched by special police. The Patriarch’s confinement follows a recent wave of arrests and pressure on clergymen of all churches throughout the country. They were charged with conducting anti-regime activities and hiding former Right-Wing extremists in their homes and church buildings. Reliable sources said that the Communists will stage a mass show trial of the clergymen early next year. The regime began a drive against the Orthodox Church recently. It was reported that 235 Orthodox clergymen had been arrested in Bucharest and nearby areas. They also were accused of engaging in anti-Government activities, and charged with having conducted secret religious meetings. Many of these clergymen were tried later at secret trials and were believed to have been given stiff sentences. Others are reported to be held at special detention camps on the outside of Bucharest. The Orthodox clergy have been more or less controlled by the State since they are directly paid by the Communist Government Roman Catholic religious orders have been abolished.