UOC Law Department comments on draft laws against UOC

The Synodal Law Department of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has commented on the bills aimed at violating the rights of believers and religious organizations of the UOC, reports the UOC Information and Education Department.

It is about four bills in the field of religion and freedom of conscience (Nos 7403, 8012, 8221, 8262), which were submitted to the Verkhovna Rada on December 9, 2022, by the Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy.

The Synod Department said that these draft laws "violate the rights and freedoms of believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church" and are aimed at "restricting the rights and liquidation of religious organizations belonging to the UOC”.

The lawyers noted that "there is no mention in the draft laws that it is the Ukrainian Orthodox Church that falls under the scope and restriction of these bills".

"However, from the content of some of these draft laws and explanatory notes to them, we can conclude that these legislative initiatives are primarily aimed at applying to religious organizations of the UOC. This is clearly evidenced by the public position of the authors of these bills," the commentary reads.

Thus, thanks to those bills it is first planned to deprive religious organizations that belong to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the status of non-profit organizations (No 7403), then the so-called "transfers" but in fact raiding seizures of UOC parishes in favour of the OCU are simplified.

Moreover, the possibility of changing the subordination of religious administrations (eparchies), monasteries, brotherhoods, and missions, "which creates additional prerequisites for their raiding (No 8262), is assumed.

The next step is to take the Pochaiv and the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavras from the UOC and transfer them to the OCU (No 8012), and finally, bill No 8221 essentially provides for a ban on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church," the UOC Law Department said.

As earlier reported, the former head of the State Department for Religious Affairs, Andriy Yurash, said that the foundation for today's actions of the authorities against the UOC had been laid thanks to his work.