Cherkasy mayor admits seized UOC cathedral is private property

Mayor of Cherkasy Bondarenko. Photo: Facebook video screenshot

Mayor Anatoliy Bondarenko stated in his video address that St. Michael's Cathedral will belong to the community of Cherkasy and will be transferred to communal ownership.

"I have instructed to begin the documentation process so that the cathedral and all buildings there will be owned by the community. These structures will be in communal ownership," he said, commenting on the situation regarding the raided cathedral of the Cherkasy Eparchy of the UOC.

The official's words effectively mean that he acknowledged that at the time of the seizure, the Orthodox shrine was private property. According to him, there are allegedly some structures on the cathedral's grounds that once belonged to the city. However, his statement confirmed that the church itself was built and owned by UOC believers.

As reported by the UOJ, the Cherkasy mayor was elected as the head of the parish council of the seized UOC cathedral.

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