UN Commission on Crime Prevention examines the facts of harassment of UOC

The head of the human rights organization NGO “Public Advocacy" Oleg Denisov. Photo: the site of the NGO "Public Advocacy"

From May 20 to 24, 2019, the 28th session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) was held in Vienna. Among other issues, it examined the information submitted by the NGO “Public Advocacy" on the systematic violation of the rights of believers of the UOC. The members of the Commission also considered cases of violation of the rights of believers in Macedonia and Montenegro, reports the website of the NGO “Public Advocacy”.

“This topic remains urgent for Ukraine, Macedonia, and Montenegro, where there is an increase in the number of facts of intolerance and discrimination against believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the archbishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church,” the NGO staff stressed.

Such manifestations of intolerance in Ukraine include:

1. the facts of intentional damage to religious buildings;
2.  statements addressed to the canonical Church and its believers in the course of conflict clashes, in social networks and media, as well as by public servants;
3. manifestations of intolerance and discrimination in the wording of decisions of local authorities and other official documentation of public authorities;
4. attempts to block worship services without a legal basis for this;
5. extremist calls for the prosecution of UOC believers by certain radical organizations in the absence of an adequate response to such facts by the law enforcement system.

The UOC communities also sent statements to a number of bodies of the international human rights mechanism.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that the European Court opened proceedings on violation of the rights of the UOC community in the village of Ptichya. According to the believers, the state power of Ukraine violated articles 8, 9, 11, 13 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms by allowing unreasonable interference in the affairs of the religious organization, effectively depriving it of property rights and the possibility of effective protection. In addition to appealing to the ECHR, the NGO “Public Advocacy” sent statements to the UN Human Rights Council and the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion and belief.

The UOJ Editorial board reminds you: in case of violation of the rights of the episcopate, clergy, laity, and institutions of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (obstruction of worship, seizure of churches, provocations, pressure, threats, etc.), you must immediately contact the Legal Department of the UOC by phone: 097 -537-55-96.

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