Kiev, March 27, 2025
Photo: uoc-news.church
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom has expressed serious concern about Ukraine’s law on banning the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
The Commission recently published its 2025 annual report, which covers issues of religious freedom around the world in 2024.
Zelensky signs bill on banning the Ukrainian Orthodox ChurchPresident Vladimir Zelensky of Ukraine signed Bill 8317 on banning the Orthodox Church nationwide into law on August 24, Ukrainian Independence Day.
“>On August 24, President Zelensky signed into law a bill aimed at banning the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, under the pretext that it is controlled by Moscow. However, as the Commission’s report notes, the Russian Orthodox Church is active only in those areas of Russian presence.
In May 2022, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church held a Local Council—the highest governing body, consisting of all hierarchs, as well as clerical, monastic, and lay representatives—at which it Ukrainian Church statutes no longer have any connection to Russian Church, state official confirms“In an official letter, Metropolitan Onuphry clearly indicated that the UOC is no longer governed by the decision of the Bishops’ Council of the ROC, and officially announced its disassociation from the Moscow Patriarchate,” Elena Bogdan said.
“>separated itself from the Moscow Patriarchate and amended its statutes accordingly.
The new statutes are even hosted on the Ukrainian government site of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience. Nevertheless, Ukrainian authorities have ignored this reality and continue to persecute the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which refuses to join the schismatic state-founded “Orthodox Church of Ukraine.”
The Commission on International Religious Freedom’s statement also notes that the law aims to punish an organization because of the actions of isolated individuals, which is incompatible with international law.
The report reads:
In August, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed into law new legal amendments related to the activities of religious organizations, despite widespread concerns about the amendments’ compatibility with international law. The revised legislation allows the government to ban religious organizations in Ukraine affiliated with a foreign religious organization whose management center is located in a country waging war against Ukraine. It also bans the Russian Orthodox Church—which only operates in Russian-occupied Ukraine—and “Russian world” (Russky mir) ideology. The amendments would likely significantly impact the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), which Ukrainian authorities and society have viewed with suspicion following Russia’s 2022 invasion, due to the UOC’s historical and ecclesiastical ties to the Moscow Patriarchate. Furthermore, the new amendments risk imposing collective punishment on individual members of religious communities. In December, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) criticized the amendments, stating that they established “disproportionate restrictions on the freedom to manifest one’s religion or belief.” USCIRF has urged the Ukrainian government to ensure that enforcement of the amendments comply with international human rights standards.
As the Commission notes, the UN has criticized the Ukrainian law, and in fact, has repeatedly condemned the persecution of the UOC (most recently Latest UN human rights report again highlights persecution of Ukrainian Orthodox ChurchThe UN’s latest report covers the period from June 1 to August 31, 2024. It refers to specific cases of persecution against the Church, as well as the unconstitutional law aimed at banning the Orthodox Church throughout the country.
“>last fall), but while the Ukrainian government talk about its European trajectory, it has ignored these warnings, in favor of banning canonical Orthodoxy in Ukraine.
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