“Of particular concern to believing citizens of Ukraine is the fact that in recent years, under the pretext of ‘preserving cultural heritage,’ religious communities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church have been deprived en masse of the right to pray in their historic churches
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“the believers reported actions by OCU representatives and certain political figures that violate the right to freedom of religion guaranteed by the Constitution of Ukraine and infringe upon the rights of parishioners of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church
“What is happening recalls the processes surrounding the Ukrainian Orthodox Church
“The Ukrainian government has literally terminated the right of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) to use the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, as it has done for almost a thousand years.
“the state's decision to seize the churches and property of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra from the UOC is shameful
“1,990 cultural heritage sites in Ukraine, including churches and other religious buildings, have been damaged or destroyed
“This raises a rhetorical question: when terminating or refusing to extend agreements with UOC religious communities, is the state truly concerned about the condition of churches that the believers themselves restored from ruins and never allowed to fall into disrepair?
“such visits are also used to draw international attention to the preservation of Ukrainian cultural monuments