Numerous violations of religious freedom have been recorded in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, which have become part of systematic repression of citizens. According to the Center for National Resistance, the Russian occupation authorities put pressure on believers, especially those who do not belong to the Moscow Patriarchate.
Source: sprotyv
Protestant Christian communities and Jehovah’s Witnesses are particularly harassed. In the occupied Donetsk region, believers are forced to hide for fear of persecution. Representatives of the so-called “ministry of state security of the Donetsk People’s Republic” regularly conduct raids, interrogate neighbors and search homes. Being caught by them often ends in torture, both physical and psychological.
Representatives of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine have also been subjected to harassment. One of the cases occurred in the village of Kalanchak in the occupied part of the Kherson region, where Russian soldiers abducted a priest of the OCU, Stepan Podolchak. His body was later found with signs of torture.
Experts emphasize that repressions against religious communities not controlled by the Moscow Patriarchate are explained by the Kremlin’s fear of free thought. It is in such communities that the occupation authorities cannot effectively manipulate people’s minds.
The Center of National Resistance calls on citizens to report violations of the rights of believers, helping the Resistance Movement of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. You can send information through the Center’s anonymous chatbot.
