On the new-old bans of church media

Website blocking. Photo: KV.by

The State Special Communications Service for Information Protection has once again announced the blocking of Orthodox websites: UOJ and Dialog.tut. And once again – at the request of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). And once again – without any explanation (unless citing martial law counts as an explanation).

Ukrainian authorities constantly proclaim their commitment to the European course and respect for human rights, yet they do the exact opposite. Judge for yourselves: is silencing Christian patriotic resources Europe? No, this is simply the typical Soviet approach – the very one that is now considered a model of a criminal totalitarian regime in Ukraine.

Yes, the SBU initiated an absurd and unfounded case against the UOJ staff, based on the ridiculous fantasies of two experts from the National Institute of Strategic Research. But the investigation has not provided a single fact of "criminal" activity from our resource. In turn, the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) and the National Police have opened cases against the experts for falsification.

Let us remind you that earlier, by the order of the SBU, the website Raskolam.net and the official (!) website of the UOC were blocked. One might assume that, in the opinion of the SBU, those sites were also operated by criminals?

Let’s be clear – the government is simply persecuting any resource that supports the UOC and speaks the truth about the church situation in Ukraine.

Now, in the United States, forces have come to power that declare their commitment to traditional, and therefore religious, values. And the new vice president has directly criticized our authorities for persecuting the UOC.

Perhaps the new leadership of our key partners should explain to their Ukrainian colleagues the basic principles of democracy?

Read also

On how the OCU scorns its own rent-a-crowd

According to Zoria, the OCU looks down on staged crowds – for them, “what matters is truth, not the number” of parishioners. And yet, for every one of Epifaniy Dumenko’s traveling services, people are bused in by the coachload.

Persecution of UOC and liquidation of UGCC in 1946: Are there parallels?

After the defeat of Nazi Germany and the liberation of Western Ukraine, the leadership of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) initiated negotiations with Soviet authorities concerning the future of its ecclesiastical structure.

On the mobilization of a priest as a sniper

A man who has chosen the path of the priesthood has no right to join the army and take up a weapon. And the very idea of killing another human being is all the more absurd.

On statistics: how many Orthodox, Muslims and Jews we have

Trust in the Razumkov Center's research methods on the topic of Orthodoxy is minimal.

Why helping children with cancer is a threat to state security

We should have long got used to the antics of some MPs, especially those who furiously hate the UOC. But they don't stop surprising us.

Is Ramadan closer to the authorities than Great Lent?

Have Muslims and Jews – who together make up just over one percent of the country’s population – become a privileged class? And yet Ukraine is widely seen as a Christian country.