The Krivoy Rog City Council refused to allocate a land plot to the UOC community for the construction of a temple

The city council of Kryvyi Rih denied the religious community of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in honor of the Holy and Equal-to-the-Apostles Constantine and Helen the privatization of a land plot for the construction of a church. The city council motivated this decision by the fact that Ukraine adopted the scandalous law No. 3894, in connection with which the said UOC community must be checked for affiliation with the Moscow Patriarchate. This was reported by the website 0564.ua.

“At the beginning of the plenary session, the Secretary of the City Council Yuriy Vilkul informed that the Department of Regulation of Urban Development and Land Relations received an application from the religious community of the UOC through the Visa Administrative Services Center for the approval of technical documentation on land management, registration of communal ownership of the land plot and its permanent use for the placement of a church building. According to Vilkul, according to the Law of Ukraine on Administrative Services, the department cannot but submit to the city council session an issue that has been submitted through Visa by any individual or legal entity, and only a decision of the city council can result in consideration. He also emphasized that the documents submitted in the application comply with the requirements of the current legislation of Ukraine,” – the statement said.

However, the chairman of the city council was objected to by one of the deputies, who pointed out that a new law in the field of church-state relations was adopted in Ukraine, according to which the communities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church should be checked for affiliation with the Moscow Patriarchate.

“In arguing her proposal, the deputy recalled the entry into force of the Law of Ukraine ‘On Protection of the Constitutional Order in the Field of Religious Organizations,’ which amended another Law of Ukraine ‘On Freedom of Education and Religious Organizations,’ according to which state or municipal property cannot be used or transferred to a religious organization whose activities are prohibited under current law. The deputy emphasized the need to investigate whether the religious community of Saints Constantine and Olena of the Kryvyi Rih Diocese of the UOC is affiliated with a foreign religious organization whose activities are prohibited in Ukraine. According to Natalia Shyshko, the Kryvyi Rih City Council can make a positive decision on the parish’s petition only if it confirms official grounds to believe that there are no signs of its affiliation with a foreign religious organization banned in Ukraine,” – the website added.

Earlier we reported that the Chernivtsi City Council continues to try to arrange a paid municipal parking lot on the territory of the Holy Spirit Cathedral of the Chernivtsi Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The city council complains that the clergy and believers are obstructing the implementation of this plan.