British media: UOJ journalists imprisoned for truth about church seizures
Journalists linked the censorship of church media with the adoption of bill 8371, which effectively aims to ban the UOC.
The British publication Express published an article by David Maddox titled 'Justin Welby's warning to President Zelensky over plans to ban Ukrainian Orthodox Church', which covers issues related to the relationship between the UOC and the Ukrainian authorities. The article not only discusses statements in defense of the UOC by the Anglican Church but also censorship, which affected Ukrainian church media, particularly the arrest of UOJ journalists.
Maddox notes that, according to lawyers defending the UOC, the authorities have not provided any specific evidence of illegal behavior justifying this censorship. He mentions an SBU raid, as a result of which human rights activist Archpriest Sergiy Chertylin and three UOJ journalists ended up behind bars, facing life imprisonment.
"According to the legal team representing the detained journalists, they are not being accused of any contact with Russia – but have been jailed for reporting on the truth of the church seizures, which the SBU says is 'damaging' to Ukraine," Maddox's material states.
As reported by the UOJ, human rights defenders have assured that repression against Orthodox journalists and priests in Ukraine will not go unnoticed by the world.
