Kiev, March 24, 2021
Photo: raskolam.net
The Shevchenko District Court of Kiev has ordered the Ukrainian State Bureau of Investigations to resume criminal proceedings against former President Petro Poroshenko for “inciting inter-confessional hostility” during the creation of the “Orthodox Church of Ukraine” (OCU).
The court’s order was announced by former Verkhovna Rada Deputy Igor Mosiychuk on Tuesday, reports TASS. The case also involves the liquidation of “Patriarch” Philaret Denisenko’s “Kiev Patriarchate.” Proceedings were initiated in 2019 at the KP’s request but were dropped in July last year, Mosiychuk recalls.
According to Klymenko Time, the case was opened by the Security Service of Ukraine in November 2019 at the request of KP parishioners, involving the illegal actions of several senior officials aimed at inciting ethnic and religious enmity during the creation of the OCU.
The Security Service later handed the case over to the Bureau of Investigations, which closed the case on July 31, saying it found no evidence of a crime.
Poroshenko repeatedly referred to the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church as a Russian fifth column, as anti-Ukrainian, and even as “Moscow demons.” He openly declared that the Ukrainian Church has no business being in Ukraine. He also turned a blind eye to the bloody seizure of churches, and priests were repeatedly harassed by officials of all levels on his watch.
Even after losing his re-election bid, Poroshenko continues to attack the Church and incite religious enmity as a member of Parliament. Last month, he introduced a new bill that would introduce a number of reasons for liquidating religious organizations.
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