Amsterdam to present a report in the U.S. on persecution of the UOC

Title page of the document on the persecution of the UOC. Photo: Save the UOC

Robert Amsterdam, an international lawyer representing the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), will participate in the International Religious Freedom Summit (IRFSummit2025) in Washington, where he will present a detailed report on violations of religious rights in Ukraine. In his statement on social media platform X, the lawyer announced that he had already distributed approximately 60 printed copies of the report to members of the U.S. Congress and other summit participants.

"The censorship of their persecution of our Church is fracturing," Amsterdam emphasized.

The document provides an in-depth analysis of the consequences of the adoption of Law 3894 in August 2024 and the reaction of the international community.

United Nations position

Ilze Brands Kehris, Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights at the UN, warned that the law might contradict Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. She noted that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights is “monitoring how
legislative developments in Ukraine may impact enjoyment of freedom of religion” and that the human rights body had expressed “concern over
the cumulative impact of Government actions targeting UOC that could be discriminatory.”

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk, in his speech in December 2023, stressed that "these proposed restrictions to the right to freedom of religion do not appear to comply with international human rights law."

At the same time, the UN OHCHR observed that the restrictions contained in the draft law did not “appear to comply with the tests of necessity and proportionality in article 18(3) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.”

Reaction of religious organizations

Pope Francis strongly condemned the law, stating: "Please, let no Christian Church be abolished, directly or indirectly! Churches must not be touched!"

The World Council of Churches noted that "neither the crimes of some individuals, nor the historical affiliations of a particular religious entity, can be a sufficient basis for measures tantamount to collective punishment of a living worshipping religious community in Ukraine. The government of Ukraine is responsible for protecting the rights of all its citizens ."

The Church of England, in February 2024, prepared a special report for its General Synod, warning of a threat to "Ukraine’s social cohesion at a time when the country needs a unified societal response to Russian aggression."

Analysis from the academic community

Dmytro Vovk, a visiting professor at Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, and Elizabeth A. Clark from the International Center for Law and Religion Studies at Brigham Young University conducted a detailed analysis of the law for Forum 18. They concluded, in particular, that the law does not comply with international standards of religious freedom and belief.

Moreover, "it bans Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) communities for their ecclesiastical, actual, or state-claimed links to the Russian Orthodox Church – Moscow Patriarchate (ROC), without any obligation for the state to prove that these communities or the whole Church are institutionally involved in crimes."

In October 2024, Vovk and Clark participated in an academic symposium dedicated to Law 3894, alongside other leading scholars of religion in Ukraine, including Thomas Bremer, Regina Elsner, and Serhii Bortnyk. Not one of the scholars in attendance offered praise or support for the law; the vast majority criticized its adoption and implementation, raising fears about its impact on the rights of UOC parishioners.

Position of human rights organizations

On October 30, 2024, Human Rights Watch issued a statement warning that "new law risks severe practical consequences for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church’s congregations and millions of parishioners.” Such consequences “range from restrictions on ownership and operation of religious properties to difficulties in accessing places of worship and heightened risk of security service surveillance and prosecution." The organization called on the Ukrainian government to suspend the implementation of the law and seek an expert opinion from the Venice Commission.

The U.S. Mission to the OSCE expressed concern over "law’s potential to collectively punish entire religious communities and blemish Ukraine’s historically robust support for religious freedom."

Internal evaluation

Notably, even the legal department of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine identified numerous inconsistencies between the provisions of the bill and Ukraine’s Constitution, as well as international law, including the European Convention on Human Rights.

Amsterdam & Partners LLP calls on the international community to use its influence to protect religious freedoms in Ukraine and to ensure compliance with international legal standards.

"It is critical that Ukraine’s international allies – including the United States – take a lead on this issue Ukraine must be encouraged to enact a course correction. A future Ukrainian peace depends on ensuring that all citizens have a stake in society and can thereby benefit from the fruits of democratic pluralism," concludes the report.

Amsterdam & Partners LLP is an international law firm headquartered in London and Washington, representing the interests of the UOC and documenting violations of religious freedoms in Ukraine. The full text of the report is available on the firm's official website.

As a reminder, Zoria assured participants of the Religious Freedom Summit in the U.S. that the ban on the UOC is "a protection of religious freedom."

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