Expert: Meeting of president with religious leaders released tension in relations

Preliminary Conclusions from President Yanukovych’s meeting with the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations

On April 21, 2011, the Ukrainian president met with the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations (AUCCRO). This was Viktor Yanukovych’s first meeting with the religious leaders of Ukraine as head of state.

It is worth noting that both the authorities and the denominations were well prepared for this meeting. Overall, the dialogue was held at the appropriate level, and therefore it likely to provide the impetus for the further development of church-state relations in Ukraine on the national and local levels.

As a result of the meeting, some tension was lifted from church-state relations, which had accumulated over the past year. Members of the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches had the chance to hear directly President Yanukovych’s views on key issues concerning the freedom of religion and relations between the state and church in Ukraine. They also presented to the head of state their views on these issues.

The President of Ukraine

Viktor Yanukovych noted the high level of cooperation between the various religious organizations in Ukraine, above all the leading role of the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations.

The head of state welcomed the active participation of the representatives of the religious organizations in developing the draft law “On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations” (the new edition) and “On Returning Religious Property to Religious Organizations,” and noted that “we will work on these changes, a legal framework will be established, and after they are agreed upon by a general consensus, I as president will sign this law.”

During this meeting President Yanukovych said that “the state does not intervene in the affairs of the religious organizations, treats each with respect.” According to him, multidenominational Ukraine occasions for a balanced policy in the religious sphere. In particular, the president said that the policy of the government “is directed toward the formation of favorable conditions for the activity of religious organizations, ensuring equal rights and opportunities, promoting tolerance and respect between believers.”

Viktor Yanukovych also noted that to secure the rights in freedom of conscience it is important to develop the relations of the central and local bodies of government with the religious organizations in various spheres, especially in the sphere of education, work relations, military chaplaincy, and restitution of church property.

The head of state stressed the importance of “solving problems of broadcasting spiritual and educational programs on the television, especially taking into account the ability of religious organizations to prevent displays of immorality, opposition to extremism, and other negative phenomena.”

The president reminded that he instructed to renew the work of the Commission on Securing Rights of Religions of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. He also noted that it is advisable to promote the charitable activity of the church and resolve issues related to tariffs for utilities for religious organizations.

Viktor Yanukovych also noted that as a result of the meeting with the AUCCRO a draft presidential directive will be prepared by the government and local bodies of government, which, after exchanging opinions with the AUCCRO, the president will sign. According to him, this directive will reflect the proposals voiced during the meeting, and also the people responsible for developing them, presenting their findings, and taking action will be identified.

In conclusion, the Ukrainian president invited the head of the denominations to discuss the frequency of such meetings with the head of state.

All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations

In preparation for the meeting, the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations prepared a written appeal to Viktor Yanukovych, in which it outlined its positions regarding:

• urgent issues in church-state relations in Ukraine (improving legislation on freedom of religion, restitution of church property, education, military chaplaincy, social and humanitarian activity of religious organizations, etc.);
• protection and strengthening of public morality in Ukraine;
• strengthening the constitutional basis of religious freedom, strengthening the institution of family and spiritual and moral values in the Ukrainian society;
• contemporary social challenges in Ukraine (increase in the “divide” between the rich and the poor, problems in protecting children and the underprivileged, massive price increase for consumer goods and utilities, etc.)

Notably, the AUCCRO, the first time with such an appeal, raised the issue of social protection of citizens against the background of the increasing wealth of big business in Ukraine.

The leaders of the denominations created a permanent mechanism of cooperation between the presidential administration of Ukraine and the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations, especially in the form of a permanent standing advisory body. In their opinions, this is necessary to better handle the issues raised in the appeal and for the strategic development of church-state relations.

In addition to the common position laid out in the appeal of the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches, during the meeting the heads of churches raised a series of problematic issues relating to activity in various denominations.

Preliminary Conclusions

Comparing the positions of President Yanukovych and the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations, declared by them at the April 21 meeting, one can make the conclusion that both sides have an overall common vision of the current issues and their solutions, especially in terms of church-state relations and the protection of public morality. At the same time, there are several important aspects where the sides differ in their positions.

One of these issues is the improvement of the current legislation on freedom of religion. As was mentioned above, on the one hand, President Yanukovych said that he is ready to sign a new edition of the Law “On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations.” On the other hand, the AUCCRO in its appeal clearly noted that for the time being they must abandon the idea of approving a new edition and instead focus on adopting the Conception of Church-State Relations in Ukraine and introducing changes to sectoral legislation, which will regulate the activity of religious organizations.

In connection with this, one can safely predict that the issue of renewing the current legislation on freedom of conscience and religious organizations will continue to carry a potential for conflict in church-state relations in the near future.

Another important issue on which the sides differ is in the preservation of the National Expert Commission of Ukraine for Protection of Public Morality (NEC). We recall that the presidential decree № 1085/2010 from 09.12.2010 “On System Optimization of Central Executive Bodies” was authorized by the government “to resolve the issue about the liquidation of the National Expert Commission of Ukraine for Protection of Public Morality.”

Yet the government never introduced the appropriate legislative initiatives to the parliament. However, in January 2011, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted at the first reading the bill on amending some legislative acts of Ukraine (regist. № 6532, authors A. Shevchenko, Y. Miroshnychenko, and others) to eliminate the Law of Ukraine “On Protection of Public Morality” and, consequently, the liquidation of the commission itself.

Ironically, the second reading of bill № 6532 was to take place the same day of the meeting of President Yanukovych with the AUCCRO. But due to technical problems the parliament’s review was postponed. Since the AUCCRO and the denominations favor maintaining the NEC, one can predict that if bill № 6532 is adopted, the churches and religious organizations will appeal to the president to veto this bill.

Another issue on which the sides disagree is restitution of church property. The AUCCRO believes that this issue should be developed and resolved comprehensively: by introducing a moratorium on the privatization of former church property, adopting more efficient rules for returning church property to religious organizations, introducing compensational mechanisms, and so forth. On the other hand, the government proposes to rework and adopt the draft law of Ukraine “On Returning Religious Buildings to Religious Organizations,” which significantly narrows the view on this problem.

Summary

Overall, as was mentioned above, President Yanukovych and the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations expressed a common vision for the problematic issues raised during their meeting on April 21.

However, what is important now is how the president’s directive will be developed as a result of this meeting, and in what method they will be executed by the government, central and local bodies of executive power—formally or effectively. Given the head of state’s constructive approach at the meeting, there is hope that the presidential directive will be processed and executed by the authorities at the appropriate level.

In conclusion, it is worth mentioned that the religious community of Ukraine has gained hoped that the meeting with the president will be an impetus for the further development of bilateral church-state relations, cooperation between the authorities and the denominations in the social and humanitarian sphere, and that it will promote spiritual and moral values and advocate a healthy lifestyle in the Ukrainian society.