The Verkhovna Rada Humanitarian Committee is hysterical over difficulties in banning the UOC

The Verkhovna Rada Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy of Ukraine has become hysterical over difficulties with the adoption of draft law No. 8371 aimed at banning the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The committee members blame international human rights organizations, mass media, fellow MPs, the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church itself for the failed attempts to vote for the ban. The corresponding statement was published on the website of the Verkhovna Rada.

“The Committee is extremely surprised by the unsubstantiated pseudo-critical remarks that have recently been made to the text of Bill 8371 by various commentators. These statements give a strong impression that these experts, firstly, have not read the text of the bill for the second reading, and secondly, are trying to evaluate it from a religious point of view, although, as we have proved, the draft law does not concern religion at all. The Committee is even more surprised by the same unfounded pseudo-criticism on the part of HESS, all legislative proposals of which have been preserved from the text of the first reading without exception, and for the second reading a huge number of important amendments of its authorship have been taken into account,” – the statement said.

The specialized committee added that it considers the Ukrainian Orthodox Church’s resistance to the bill No. 8371 to be a “confession of guilt”. The MPs added that they will not allow pressure on Parliament and will do everything to ensure that the law is passed in the near future.

“The Committee considers as a “confession of guilt” on the part of the Church, which publicly declares the severance of its ties with the “rpts”, but at the same time for some reason – like the devil’s incense – is afraid of the bill to ban this criminal organization and its associated henchmen in Ukraine. The Committee also notes that all attempts to frighten Ukraine’s people’s deputies with international pressure are nothing more than information and psychological operations, as confirmed by our parliamentary colleagues from the West. We assure all the “Moscow nightingales” who feed from the palms of the Kremlin and its oligarchs and spread these fakes abroad and in Ukraine that attempts to blackmail Ukrainian politicians only strengthen our desire to bring the bill 8371 to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine for adoption in the second reading and as a whole,” – the committee added.