Politologist: Violating religious freedom can alienate people from the state

Prayer vigil of UOC believers near the Verkhovna Rada. Photo: UOJ

Political analyst and historian Kostiantyn Bondarenko stated that a state that employs repressive measures against representatives of any Church risks losing the support of its believers. He expressed this in his Telegram channel.

"The state cannot be an absolute, a god, or a sacred cow. If the state denies rights to its citizens, the citizens should have the right to question their obligations to the state," he noted.

Bondarenko predicts that the realization of their rights, which are being infringed upon by the state, will inevitably come to Ukraine, though not soon.

The problem with the state of Ukraine, he asserts, is that it does not fear its own citizens. "And if there is no fear, then sooner or later, the concept of conscience becomes dulled. In response to the repression of a particular church's rights, believers may suddenly realize their moral right to refuse to pay taxes to the state and to refuse to fulfill their duty to defend this very state. Massively, millions of citizens might simultaneously confuse the repressive system, the courts, and the fiscal authorities," the political analyst wrote.

Bondarenko believes that the issue with the Ukrainian state is its lack of fear of its own citizens. "And if there is no fear, then sooner or later, the concept of conscience becomes dulled," he concluded.

As reported by the UOJ, in the next plenary week, MPs intend to vote on Bill 8371, which effectively bans the activities of the UOC in Ukraine.

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