The bill that establishes legal grounds for the ban on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the moscow Patriarchate received initial approval from the Verkhovna Rada on October 19. This was reported by MP Oleksiy Honcharenko in his Telegram channel.
"The Rada supported the bill on the ban of religious organizations associated with russia (No. 8371). It's currently in the first reading. Amendments will be added, and it will be further considered in the second reading, but not today", - Honcharenko wrote.
He clarified that 267 members of parliament voted in favor.
It is noted that some parliamentarians opposed the decision, including Yuriy Boyko, Yevhen Shevchenko, and Artem Dmytruk.
The voting by factions, according to LIGA.net, looks as follows:
- "Servant of the People": 175 in favor, 1 abstained, 12 did not vote;
- "European Solidarity": 26 in favor;
- "Batkivshchyna": 17 in favor;
- "Platform for Life and Peace" (formerly Opposition Platform - For Life): 1 in favor, 11 against, 3 did not vote;
- "Holos" (Voice): 18 in favor;
- "Renewal of Ukraine": 3 against, 1 abstained, 1 did not vote;
- "For the Future": 8 in favor, 1 did not vote;
- "Trust" (Dovira): 12 in favor;
- Non-factional: 10 in favor, 1 against.
It is worth noting that the government developed bill No. 8371 in compliance with a decision by the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) dating back to January 2023.
It was previously reported that signatures were collected in the Verkhovna Rada to consider the ban on the moscow Patriarchate Church.