“Just not in churches”: The DESS claims that after the liquidation of the UOC, believers will not be prohibited from gathering for prayer.

The head of Ukraine’s State Service for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience, Viktor Yelensky, said that even after the liquidation of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the expropriation of its property, the state will not be able to restrict the right of believers to gather for prayer without registration and religious buildings. He said this in a comment to DW.

“We are acting in such a way that the right of a person residing in Ukraine to freely profess their religious beliefs, to gather for this purpose individually or collectively, to use religious buildings, to change their religious beliefs or not to change them, remains inviolable and protected,” – Yelensky said.

Religious scholar Oksana Gorkusha expresses a similar opinion. She argues that the state has no mechanisms by which it can restrict the right of believers to hold prayer meetings.

“The Ukrainian state has no mechanisms or instruments to prohibit or completely stop the activities of this institution. Parishioners of the UOC-MP can continue to visit the priest they are accustomed to visiting and continue to pray,” – Gorkusha noted.

Earlier, the scandalous religious scholar, DESS expert, and OCU lobbyist Yuriy Chornomorets stated that the Ukrainian Orthodox Church itself is to blame for being subject to a complete ban. Chornomorets called on the clergy and believers of the UOC to become “normal Ukrainians” so as not to lose their rights to real estate and other state privileges.