Committee for Realization of Rights of Religious Organizations Holds First Session Under Present Government

The Committee for Realization of Rights of Religious Organizations of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine headed by Vice Prime Minister Raisa Bogatyriova on  October 22, held its first session under the present Government, the Institute for Religious Freedom (ІRF) reported.

The officials included in the meeting’s agenda questions regarding the newly passed alterations to the Law of Ukraine On Freedom of Worship and Religious Organizations and the Law of Ukraine On Unified State Demographic Register. The decision of the committee confirmed the position of the members of the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations who have recently called on Ukraine’s president to veto the mentioned laws.

The Committee instructed the Ministry of Internal Affairs, State Migration Service to elaborate jointly with the Ministry of Culture the question of simplification of the procedure of obtaining permissions to stay in Ukraine by foreign religious ministers coming to Ukraine on invitations of religious organizations.

The committee also considered the question of granting religious organizations the right to found private educational institutions.

The Committee decided to instruct the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport of Ukraine to elaborate this question jointly with the Minister of Culture and prepare proposals to be considered at the next session. Let us remind the readers that the mentioned initiative was repeatedly declined during consideration thereof in the Parliament.