The Council passed a law banning the UOC-MP in Ukraine

On August 20, 2024, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine made a historic decision, passing draft law No. 8371 in the second reading and as a whole, which prohibits the activities of religious organizations with ties to the aggressor state. This law actually means a ban on the activities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UPC MP) on the territory of Ukraine.

People's deputies Yaroslav Zheleznyak and Oleksiy Honcharenko acted as the initiators of this bill, who reported on the voting results. The draft law was supported by 265 deputies, which underlines the significant support of this decision in the parliament. At the same time, 29 deputies voted against, and 4 more abstained from voting.

The main purpose of the law is to restrict the activities of religious organizations that have any ties to the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC), whose activities are now prohibited on the territory of Ukraine. The law also defines what exactly is considered such ties, and provides a 9-month deadline for religious communities in Ukraine, which are subordinate to the UOC MP, to sever these ties.

The document also provides for state supervision of the implementation of this law, giving appropriate powers to state bodies. In the event that religious organizations do not fulfill the requirements of the law on their own, the state will have the right to intervene.

The law enters into force 30 days after its publication, which gives religious communities a certain period to bring their activities into line with the new requirements.

It should be noted that draft law No. 8371 was first adopted in the first reading on October 19, 2023, but its further consideration was delayed due to political circumstances. Only after the People's Deputies blocked the rostrum in July 2024, demanding the continuation of the proceedings, did the issue move.

On August 15, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi, called on the Verkhovna Rada to convene to consider important legislative initiatives, stressing the importance of "spiritual independence" for the country. The result of this appeal was the final adoption of the law, which is designed to ensure the spiritual independence of Ukraine from the influence of the aggressor country.