On October 9, at 14:00, presentation of the study entitled Religious Occupation: Oppression of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate in Crimea will be held on the premises of the Ukrainian Crisis Media Center.

During the event, exclusive documents on the current situation of the Kyiv Patriarchate in Crimea will be presented, the mechanisms and means by which the occupying power is oppressing the Crimean Eparchy of the UOC-KP will be described, and the conformity of Russia’s actions with international norms assessed.

The occupation of Crimea has become a challenge for today’s human rights protection system. The aggressor’s actions have resulted in interference with freedom of religion on the peninsula. The oppression of the Crimean Eparchy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate (UOC-KP) is particularly strong.

In the first days of the occupation, the Bishops’ Council of the Kyiv Patriarchate issued a statement where it condemned the actions of the occupants. Moreover, the Crimean Eparchy of the UOC-KP did not undergo a re-registration as per the demands of Russia’s authorities, which put them outside the law. Due to the seizure of temples and the spread of Russian laws on the peninsula, within a year after the occupation began, 38 out of 46 communities of the Kyiv Patriarchate in Crimea ceased to exist.

Speakers:

Clement, Archbishop of Simferopol and Crimea

Sergiy Zayets, attorney, expert of the Regional Center for Human Rights

Prof. Oleksandr Sagan, Ukrainian religious scholar

Anastasiya Martynovska, lawyer of the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union

Time and venue:

Tuesday, October 9, 2018, at 14:00, premises of the Ukrainian Crisis Media Center, 2 Khreshchatyk, Kyiv.

For accreditation and additional information please contact:

+38 067 177 64 03

[email protected]

Olena Finayeva, communications manager of the Regional Center for Human Rights