Russia to Continue Repressions against Ukrainian Church in Crimea

The occupying country continues its repressions against the Ukrainian church in the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. The ombudsman of Ukraine Lyudmyla Denysova stated this.

“Representatives of the occupation administration operating on the territory of the temporarily occupied peninsula submitted to Clement, Metropolitan of Simferopol and Crimea, a court decision with a request to dismantle the Orthodox Church of Ukraine ‘Burning Bush’ building in Yevpatoria and pay a fine of 50,000 rubles,” Denysova said.

She stressed that such aggressor’s actions opposed directly to international law, in particular, the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Besides, the Russian Federation once again ignores UN General Assembly resolution 74/168, in which the international community calls on the occupier to ensure freedom of religion and belief without any discrimination or the introduction of artificial regulatory barriers.

“I want to emphasise that before the temporary occupation there were 49 Ukrainian Orthodox religious organisations on the Crimean Peninsula, but due to the occupier’s repressions currently just six of them exist. Dozens of churches, houses of worship and places of worship have been seized and are under the Russian occupation administration control,” the ombudsman announced.

Denysova condemned the actions of the occupying country aimed at destroying the Orthodox Church of Ukraine and persecuting its believers and called on the international community to respond decisively to fundamental human rights violations in the temporarily occupied Crimea.

Natalia Tolub