Epiphany comes to MIA to complain of weak police aid in seizing temple

Epiphany Dumenko and Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Arsen Avakov, 2019. Photo: Facebook

As it became known to the UOJ from its own sources, the head of the OCU Epiphany Dumenko has visited the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, trying to get an appointment with Arsen Avakov.

According to our insiders, the head of the newly formed church structure wants to raise the topic of insufficiently active assistance of law enforcement agencies in the "transfer" of churches of the UOC to the OCU.

At the same time, the UOJ has repeatedly written that seizures of UOC churches often occur precisely with the assistance of the police, who either do not interfere with what is happening or openly side with the raiders and actively help them.

For example, most recently, law enforcement officers helped adherents of the OCU to seize the St. John the Theologian Church in the village of Mashcha, Rivne region, and when activists of the newly formed structure beat the believers of the UOC guarding the church, the policemen hid in a company car. The police didn’t particularly hinder the invaders who were aiming at the church house in the village of Stenka, Ternopil region, where the community of the church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin, which had already been seized by the OCU, is currently holding services. Law enforcers were also inactive when supporters of the OCU with an ax broke open the doors of the Holy Protection Church of the UOC in Riasniki, Rivne region, seized the UOC church in Tetilkivtsi, Ternopil region, etc.

As reported, earlier the head of the OCU Epiphany said that the Ministry of Internal Affairs would protect the right of communities to move to the OCU throughout Ukraine.

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