Russian Rights Advocate Appeals To UN Human Rights Chief Over Clergy Abuse In Ukraine

Russian human rights advocate Tatyana Moskalkova has appealed to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights calling for a stop to Ukraine's illegal actions against the monks of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 17th March, 2023) Russian human rights advocate Tatyana Moskalkova has appealed to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights calling for a stop to Ukraine's illegal actions against the monks of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra.

On March 10, the National Kiev-Pechersk Historical and Cultural Preserve ordered the monks based in the monastery to leave it by March 29 after an interdepartmental Ukrainian commission accused the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) of violating the terms of an agreement on the use of state property. Ukrainian Culture Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko said the monks could stay in the Lavra if they join the schismatic Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), a decision that might be "stimulated."

"Such resolution represents the abuse of human rights to the freedom of conscience and belief ... I appeal to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, pleading with him to assist, using his credentials, in averting this new lawless action by the Ukrainian regime," Moskalkova wrote on Telegram.

She also recalled the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief adopted by the UN in 1981, stating that the freedom of religion or beliefs is one of the fundamental rights of every human.

"This right is universal, it belongs equally to all people everywhere, no matter who they are, where they live," the rights advocate stressed, adding that Kiev is once more flouting the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights along with other human rights documents.

On January 17, Metropolitan Anthony of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate informed the UN that 129 cathedrals of the canonical church were illegally seized in Ukraine in 2022 alone.

Since the start of Moscow's military operation in Ukraine, attacks against the clergy and believers of the canonical UOC, the largest in the country, increased, accompanied by criminal cases, mass raids of churches and their forced registration with the schismatic OCU. In March, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov wrote to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and OSCE Chairman Bujar Osmani in order to draw their attention to the violation of orthodox believers' rights in Ukraine.