Amsterdam: Pressure on the UOC is a crime against humanity
Such attacks on the UOC will fall under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court.
Robert Amsterdam, head of the international human rights firm Amsterdam & Partners LLP, sent an urgent message to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky regarding the campaign against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC). In this message, he noted that crimes against humanity are being or will soon be committed in Ukraine, according to Strana.
"These documents also provide crucial evidence that there is a risk that crimes against humanity are or will soon be committed in Ukraine that would fall within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court," warned the human rights lawyer.
He emphasized that there has long been evidence of such crimes being committed against the civilian population. These documents confirm that these attacks are “pursuant to or in furtherance of a state or organizational policy to commit such an attack," as outlined in the Rome Statute.
"The evidence we set out in this letter forms a sound basis for an investigation by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court of the possible commission of crimes against humanity as part of a systematic attack on the UOC and its adherents," writes Robert Amsterdam.
As reported by the UOJ, Amsterdam has stated that UOC parishes that refuse to transfer to the Ecumenical Patriarchate will be subject to liquidation.