Bohdan: We need freedom, not domination and lawlessness of "patriots"
Head of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience in 2020-2022 Olena Bohdan. Photo: ukranews.com
Olena Bohdan, head of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience in 2020-2022, believes that Ukraine needs freedom, not domination and lawlessness of "patriots".
In an interview with dialogtut.org, Bohdan said that "while some are holding back from speaking publicly about problems, others in Ukraine believe that in the maelstrom of war tragedies, it is possible to disregard the rule of law, ignore one of the key commandments ‘Thou shalt not bear false witness’, humiliate and harass their fellow citizens - and pass it all off as patriotism".
According to her, some Ukrainian citizens "feel no dissonance when priests run for political parties and chair the land commission in local government".
"And really, is it so hard to think about soul-pastoral care, liturgy and... sharing land with pine trees near Kyiv at the same time? And is anyone embarrassed by the pre-election photo where the priestly vestments are coupled with the name of a political party?" asks Olena Bohdan.
She is sure that "today, further silence is already felt as a harm to one's country, not as a concern for it." Moreover, she says, "When we make no effort to overcome the stupidity and dishonesty in our society, we become their silent accomplices."
"What we need in Ukraine is freedom and truth under the blue-and-yellow flag, not domination by people who, playing on the patriotic feelings of Ukrainians exhausted and wounded by war, fill our country with lies and legal outrage," the former head of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience stressed.
She believes that the conflict situations around churches should be returned to an adequate legal field, as this is "one of the steps to bring Ukrainian Orthodoxy into a reality where truth and law, real rather than seeming patriotism, matter, and this, in turn, is an integral part of national security".
As earlier reported, Olena Bohdan believes that the UOC will not strengthen national security if it leaves the Lavra.
Read also
Kosovo to enact law restricting Serbian Church, experts say
Analysts warn that the new "Law on Foreigners" in Kosovo could restrict the presence of clergy, believers' access to shrines, and increase pressure on the Serbian community.
Congress Speaker: Demand to introduce Sharia law in USA is a serious problem
The Speaker of the House of Representatives stated that there is growing concern in society about attempts to impose Islamic law, which is incompatible with the American Constitution.
UK government introduces restrictions on "anti-Muslim hostility"
UK authorities have adopted a new definition of "Islamophobia" which, according to experts, could provide Muslims with special protection and restrict freedom of speech.
Dumenko brings icon in Church Slavonic to Ministry of Health
Epifaniy presented cardiologists with an Intercession icon, with inscriptions in Church Slavonic, which his structure calls a "sign of the Moscow tradition".
ISIS supporters carries out terrorist attack at anti-Islamic protest in NY
Near the home of New York's Muslim mayor, radicals threw two makeshift bombs at protesters during an anti-Islamic rally.
Hryshchuk: If UOC hands over its church itself, angle grinders aren't needed
An OCU chaplain called on UOC believers to accept the loss of the shrine for the sake of their own "enlightenment".