Vinnitsa, Vinnitsa Province, Ukraine, June 19, 2024
tulchin-eparchia.org.ua
A court of appeal in the Ukrainian city of Vinnitsa ruled yesterday, June 18, to uphold the verdict against the elderly and ailing Metropolitan Jonathan of Tulchin of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
In August, His Eminence, 75, was found guilty of justifying the Russian war against Ukraine and inciting religious enmity, evidence of which was allegedly found during searches at his residence and diocesan administration.
He was sentenced to five years in prison with the confiscation of his property. The verdict was not enforced while under appeal.
The appeal court’s decision comes into force from the moment of its proclamation, and can be appealed to another court within the Supreme Court of Ukraine within three months, reports Vinnitsa.info, whose correspondent was present for the ruling.
The elderly hierarch, known as a composer of Church music, is also in poor health, which has only been exacerbated by the state’s persecution campaign against him.
In November 2022, a month after the searches, after having been officially notified of state suspicion against him, he had to undergo heart surgery. In March of this year, he suffered a stroke and was hospitalized for 10 days.
Although the Metropolitan wrote a petition while being treated for his stroke, asking to be sent to Russia as part of a prisoner exchange, at his court session on June 12, he canceled this request. According to his lawyer, he is no prisoner of war and does not admit any guilt. His Eminence “wants to continue working for the good of Ukraine.”
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