Tom Catena calling on international community to free Ruben Vardanyan and other Armenian prisoners
2017 Aurora Humanitarian Prize laureate Tom Catena has released a video message urging the international community to take action for the immediate release of Ruben Vardanyan and other Armenian prisoners.
“Everyone who knows Ruben Vardanyan is aware that the charges against him are completely false and absurd,” Catena said.
In his video message, Dr. Catena stated:
“Hello, I am Tom Catena, the medical director of the Mother of Mercy Hospital in the Nuba Mountains of South Sudan. Through this short video, I want to express my support for my friend Ruben Vardanyan, who has been unjustly imprisoned in Azerbaijan for more than a year.
I have known Ruben since 2017 when I received the Aurora Humanitarian Prize for my work in Sudan. As the chair of the Aurora Prize Initiative, I have had the opportunity to get to know Ruben well over the years. We have traveled together frequently for various humanitarian projects. I know Ruben as an exceptionally just and honest person.
Anyone who knows Ruben understands that the accusations against him are utterly false and ridiculous. He traveled to Artsakh to support the local government and its people, fully aware of the risks involved. Despite the risks, he made the decision to go. I am calling on the international community and all people of goodwill to demand the release of Ruben and all Armenian prisoners who are being unjustly held in Azerbaijani prisons.”
Dr. Catena was awarded the $1.1 million Aurora Prize, which honors individuals who risk their lives to save others. He has also received honorary doctorates from Brown University (2016) and Yerevan State Medical University (2017). In 2015, Time magazine recognized him as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. In December 2018, Catena became the first president of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, continuing his humanitarian work at the Mother of Mercy Hospital in Sudan.
Dr. Tom Catena, the chairman of the advisory board of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, is a surgeon, veteran, Catholic missionary, and globally recognized humanitarian. In his capacity as the chairman of the advisory board of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, Dr. Catena collaborates with political leaders, humanitarian organizations, general practitioners, and ordinary people worldwide to promote the message of “Gratitude in Action.”
As the founder of the Mother of Mercy Hospital in the war-torn Nuba Mountains of Sudan, Dr. Catena has dedicated the past decade of his life to providing medical aid. He remains the only full-time surgeon serving this vast region, which is comparable in size to Austria.
