With Russia on the verge of destroying virtually the last remaining Ukrainian Orthodox Church place of worship in occupied Crimea, the UN Human Rights Committee has stepped in. The Committee has applied its Rule 94 as an interim measure, and thus halted the eviction of the congregation from the Cathedral of Vladimir and Olga in the center of Simferopol. This is, of course, if Russia does not simply flout the order, however Serhiy Zayets, who is representing 50 members of the congregation, notes that Russia is shortly due to report to UN bodies on its human rights record in a broader context. Flagrant refusal to obey such a ruling is fraught with “serious reputational losses”, Zayets believes.
Russia's War Against Ukraine
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Halya Coynash: Russia’s destruction of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Crimea
Men walk in front of the Cathedral of Saint Vladimir and Saint Olga in Simferopol, the only major Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Russian-annexed Crimea, on Feb. 15, 2019.
