ArmInfo. In The Hague worshippers at a church in the Netherlands that have been holding round-the-clock prayer services for more than six weeks to prevent an Armenian family from being deported are hoping for a Christmas miracle. The Reuters news agency reports that since the end of October the Tamrazyan family, a husband, a wife, and three children, continue to hide in the church.
The legislation of the Netherlands prohibits law enforcement agencies to conduct actions in places where religious ceremonies are held. Priests from different regions of the Netherlands, France, Italy and Spain arrived in The Hague, and, replacing each other, they perform continuous worship at the altar of the church.
They are "from all over the world, and that means a lot to our family. ...It gives us strength to keep going," said daughter Hayarpi, 21. "I really don't know what the outcome will be, but we hope we can stay here because this is our home."
The father of the family, Sasun, moved to the Netherlands from Armenia with his wife and three children in 2008 to avoid persecution for his political views. The authorities of the Netherlands now claim that Armenia is now a safe country and the family can freely return to their homeland.
Reuters recalls that in the 1960s and 1970s, the Netherlands accepted a large number of labor migrants, but now it is one of the countries with the toughest policies on migrants in Europe.