State Service for Ethnopolitics initiates nationwide audit of UOC property

Locked UOC church. Photo: UOC

The Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, the relevant committee of the Verkhovna Rada, and the State Service for Ethnopolitics held a meeting where they decided to conduct a nationwide audit of the property of UOC religious communities, which may soon be subject to state expropriation. This was reported by the Ministry’s press service.

It was noted that more than 100 officials, experts, MPs, local organization representatives, and religious scholars participated in the hearing.

"The Ministry of Culture has already begun inspections of properties used by religious organizations, with the aim of reclaiming property if violations are found," the statement said.

Acting Secretary of the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications, Olena Zemliana, announced that the Cabinet of Ministers had issued an order allowing regional branches of the Ministry of Culture to conduct the necessary inspections on-site.

"We have prepared instructions for the institutions under the Ministry’s jurisdiction to audit the property being used by religious organizations. This will enable the application of legal norms to reclaim property once the law comes into force. Responses are already coming in," Zemliana stated.

As a result of the hearing, it was decided to recommend to the Cabinet of Ministers to proceed with the implementation of the Plan for organizing the preparation of draft acts and other tasks necessary for the implementation of the Law of Ukraine "On the Protection of Constitutional Order in the Sphere of Religious Organizations' Activities," and to increase funding for the State Service for Ethnopolitics.

As previously reported by the UOJ, on September 23, the law "On the Protection of Constitutional Order in the Sphere of Religious Organizations' Activities," passed by the Verkhovna Rada on August 20 and signed by President Volodymyr Zelensky on August 24, came into effect.

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