The director of the “Ancient Kyiv” Nature Reserve criticized the religious procession at the Pochaiv Lavra

Roman Malenkov, director of the “Ancient Kyiv” National Reserve, expressed strong dissatisfaction with the traditional religious procession from Kamianets-Podilskyi to the Pochaiv Lavra. In a post on social media, he described the procession of thousands of pilgrims from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church as a “horrible nightmare,” emphasizing the massive scale of this religious event.

On his Facebook account, Roman Malenkov expressed bewilderment that neither the ongoing military operations nor the position of state authorities were preventing the procession from taking place. The official questioned whether this mass gathering constitutes a violation of existing legal restrictions and expressed concerns regarding the ideological views of the procession’s participants, suggesting the presence of pro-Russian sentiments among the pilgrims.

Malenkov also noted the high level of organization among the participants in the religious procession, which, he said, is cause for concern, especially given that the route passes through the western regions of Ukraine. However, the text does not specify whether such claims apply to other mass gatherings, such as pilgrimages by members of other faiths or the holding of large-scale public events in the country.

As a reminder, Viktor Yelensky, head of Ukraine’s State Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS), previously clarified the limits of religious rights under martial law, particularly with regard to religious processions. He emphasized that freedom of conscience is a value guaranteed by the Constitution that cannot be restricted even during wartime, unlike freedom of assembly or freedom of speech.