Article by UOC's lawyer about Church persecution published in Great Britain

Metropolitan Onuphry at the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. Photo: Roman Pylypey

The British conservative media The Critic published an article by international lawyer Robert Amsterdam titled «The Forgotten Ukrainians», in which the human rights advocate criticizes the silence of Western governments on religious persecution in Ukraine. Amsterdam accused the UK government of «shameful silence» regarding violations of religious freedom in Ukraine.

Particular criticism in the article was directed atStephen Doughty, the Minister of State for Europe, North America and Overseas Territories. Amsterdam notes that Doughty demonstrated a "lack of knowledge and wilful blindness" in responses to parliamentary inquiries by Sir Iain Duncan Smith about religious freedom in Ukraine. The minister stated that "the UK fully supports the intention behind Law 3894" and took the assurances of the Ukrainian government «at face value», without subjecting them to critical analysis.

"Doughty’s lack of knowledge and wilful blindness were evident in both his replies. They also show a dereliction of duty to help secure Ukraine’s democracy and commitment to human rights for all," noted Amsterdam.

He emphasizes that Doughty naively relied on the assurances of the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations (AUCCRO) that there is no religious persecution in Ukraine. However, as Amsterdam points out, what he fails to realise, is that the UOC has been actively excluded from this religious council, thereby losing the opportunity to speak to UK ministers about the persecution it faces.

Amsterdam writes that Ukraine is attempting to dissolve the UOC based on false accusations of supporting the Russian invasion, while completely ignoring numerous facts. The UOC has repeatedly condemned Russian aggression and the ideology of the "Russian World", donated millions to humanitarian aid, opened a network of churches abroad for Ukrainian refugees, and severed ties with the ROC in 2022.

He describes the escalation of persecution: churches belonging to the UOC are being violently seized and handed over to a state-backed church; bishops and priests are being arrested on politically motivated grounds, and the 80-year-old Metropolitan Onuphry was stripped of Ukrainian citizenship by presidential decree. Meanwhile, the author notes that Bill 3894, aimed against the UOC, is criticized by authoritative international organizations and leaders, including Pope Francis, U.S. Vice President Vance, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Human Rights Watch, the U.S. Mission to the OSCE, the World Council of Churches, and the Church of England.

The lawyer notes that Western media are gradually beginning to recognize the problems in the Ukrainian government. He refers to recent publications in the Financial Times and The Spectator, which reveal corruption and abuses by Ukrainian authorities led by Zelensky. According to Amsterdam, for too long, the Ukrainian government believed that the West was too distracted to notice blatant human rights violations, but the Western press is slowly beginning to understand that the authorities in Ukraine are making poor decisions, creating divisions and distrust at a time when the country desperately needs unity. Meanwhile, the author emphasizes that despite the growing understanding of problems with the Ukrainian government, religious persecutions of the UOC remain in the shadows and do not receive due attention.

In conclusion, Amsterdam calls on the British government to "take seriously the legitimate concerns about religious freedom in Ukraine" and support UOC believers in defending their rights. According to the lawyer, Ukraine risks "undermining the very values that its citizens are dying for" if it continues religious persecutions given the nature of the war.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that young Republicans in New York pointed out issues of religious freedom in Ukraine.

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