Zelensky dismisses head of Dubno DSA – an active opponent of UOC
The President of Ukraine fired six DSA heads in the Rovno region, including Yuri Parfeniuk noted for numerous violations of the rights of UOC believers.
On September 19, 2019, President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky dismissed Yuri Parfenyuk from the post of head of the Dubno District State Administration of the Rovno region due to the expiration of the term of office of the previous President. This is stated in decree No. 338/2019-rp, published on the official website of the President.
The President also dismissed Vitaly Liushin, head of the Berezno DSA, Sergey Cherniy – head of the Korets DSA, Peter Rukher – head of the Mlinov DSA, Bohdan Turovich – head of the Ostroh DSA, and Oleh Vashchuk – head of the Radivilov DSA.
Recall Yuri Parfeniuk is one of the most active opponents of the UOC, who was noted by numerous violations of the rights of believers living in the Rovno region. It was the authorities of the Dubno district, led by Parfeniuk, that actively facilitated seizures of the temples of the canonical Church, taking the side of the newly formed OCU.
It was in this district that one of the most sensational cases of church raiding took place in the village of Ptichya, where the UOC believers were expelled from the church, threatening with weapons. The seizure took place with the complete inaction of the police and with the help of ex-soldiers of the battalion "Aidar" and "Azov".
Also, in the Dubno district, there are the villages of Povcha, Rachin, Belogorodka, Sudobichi and others, notorious for their interfaith conflicts.
We recall that on September 10, Vladimir Zelensky met with believers of the UOC at the Rovno airport, where he arrived on a working visit specifically to introduce the new head of the Rovno Regional State Administration. About 200 believers and 30 clergymen from the Rovno and Sarny Eparchies of the canonical Church gathered at the entrance to the international airport. They handed over the information to Zelensky about the systematic violation of their constitutional rights by OCU activists.
