DESS expert Filipovich criticized MP Poturaev's position on banning the UOC

Lyudmila Filipovich, a lobbyist for the OCU in the media, Doctor of Philosophy, professor at the Skovoroda Institute of Philosophy of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, criticized the position of MP Mykyta Poturaev regarding the ban on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Filippovich called the MP’s statements that privately owned UOC churches should be converted into warehouses and vegetable storage facilities unacceptable. She said this on the YouTube channel “Viche.”

“How should we react to this? This cannot be tolerated. And since we consider ourselves responsible citizens, we will defend the rights and freedoms of people. To be honest, I was shocked by what I heard,” — said the religious scholar.

Earlier, MP Mykyta Poturayev stated that all churches rented by the Ukrainian Orthodox Church from the state or local communities would be “returned” to their owners, and religious communities would effectively be expelled from them. He cited specific examples—the Kyiv-Pechersk and Pochaiv Lavras, which, according to him, “will return to state ownership.” As for privately owned religious buildings, he said that although they would not be taken away, holding services there would be prohibited, and the buildings themselves could be “converted” into vegetable warehouses, shops, or even casinos.