Amsterdam strongly reacts to media "hysteria" regarding his letters to VRU
"My letters are an absolute bare minimum; lawmakers must understand that they cannot destroy a 1,000-year-old church in silence," stressed the US human rights defender.
The head of the international human rights company Amsterdam & Partners LLP, lawyer for the UOC Robert Amsterdam, commented on the "apoplectic" reaction of the media on social media to the letters he sent to the Verkhovna Rada regarding the possible adoption of bill No. 8371.
"This hysteria demonstrates that a country that bans political parties, restricts non-conforming media, delays elections, and seeks to ban the country's largest denomination church has lost the capacity to understand political accountability," emphasized the human rights defender.
He added that his "letters are an absolute bare minimum given the gravity of the situation of the UOC, and lawmakers must understand that they cannot destroy a 1,000-year-old church in silence."
As the UOJ reported, panic erupted in the Verkhovna Rada over Amsterdam's human rights activities. Political analyst Kostiantyn Bondarenko warned that several Western publications had received orders from the Office of the President regarding publications discrediting the UOC and against American lawyer Robert Amsterdam. Recently, an article appeared in the American media outlet The Wall Street Journal justifying the actions of Ukrainian lawmakers seeking to ban the UOC.