MP: By banning the UOC, we are not fighting religion
Poturaev agrees that freedom of religion is number one principle of European democracy, but thinks the authorities do not violate this principle by banning the UOC.
On April 10, 2023, Nikita Poturaev, MP from the Servant of the People party, chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy, said that by banning the UOC, the authorities are not fighting religion.
In an interview with Ukrinform, Poturaev answered a journalist's question about how Europeans and the whole world, for whom "freedom of religion is one of the greatest values," will look at the ban on the UOC.
Poturaev agreed that freedom of conscience is “a basic freedom that was enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights back in 1947.”
“This is one of the fundamental human freedoms, which should be recognized by all countries. In this sense, Ukraine does not violate anything, because we are not fighting religion, we are not fighting believers. This is not the subject of any bill currently registered in the Verkhovna Rada,” Poturaev said.
Earlier, the UOJ wrote that according to Poturaev, European practice requires that decisions such as the eviction of Lavra monks “have judicial confirmation.”
