In Poland, OCU cleric accused of sympathizing with UPA and called to leave the country

A conflict has broken out in the Polish city of Poznan over the local community of the OCU. Supporters of the Ukrainian schism, who attend religious events in the Jesuit church, found leaflets on their cars accusing their rector, Ivan Dziuba, of glorifying the UPA and calling for them to leave the country.

The anonymous leaflets contained harsh and ultimatum statements. «There is no place for Banderites in the church! Glorifying the murderers of the OUN-UPA is a spit in the face of the families of the victims! […] Burn the red and black flags that insult the memory of the victims of Ukrainian nationalists!» the text read. The authors directly addressed the cleric: «UPA supporter, priest Ivan Dziuba. Get out of Poland!» The leaflets also reportedly featured an image of Stepan Bandera in a Nazi uniform with a quote attributed to him.

Photos of the leaflets were published on the Telegram channel «ANDRIUK ONLINE», where the incident was linked to the activities of «Russian agents in Poland». One of the parishioners who found the leaflet expressed fear for the safety of her family: «My husband and I did not expect this. We are scared. First of all, I am scared for the children, for the family. It is unclear what to expect from them next.»

Earlier, the Primate of the Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church sent a complaint to Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople related to the invasion of the OCU into the canonical territory of the PAOC. The protest is related to the establishment of so-called chaplaincy missions by the OCU in Poland, under the guise of which Ukrainian schismatics open full-fledged parishes.