In Kiev, the territorial staffing center mobilized Andrei Batsul, who serves in the Holy Trinity Monastery of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. On February 20, it was taken away by representatives of the shopping center and sent to the Desna Training Center, which caused the discussion among the representatives of the clergy and the public.
According to the Constitution of Ukraine, citizens have the right to abandon military service on the basis of religious beliefs. However, there is no current legislation that regulates this rule, which creates legal uncertainty. As stated in Article 336 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, evasion of conscription can lead to criminal liability in the form of imprisonment for a period of three to five years.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has decided to book the clergymen, which enables certain categories of clerics to be released from mobilization. According to Tatiana Cameristova, a spokeswoman for the Rivne Regional Center of Acquisition, the issue of reservation of clergymen is within the competence of the State Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience. At the same time, she stressed that no more than 50% of clergy can be booked from service.
Also important is the position of representatives of religious institutions. The priest Petro Martyniuk from the PCU emphasizes that the canons of the church are forbidden to take weapons in the hands of the church, and even the unintentional murder by the priest deprives him of the right to carry out worship.
Currently, the issue of reservation of clergy, including representatives of the UOC -MP, remains open, and there are questions about making changes to the legislation to resolve the situation where religious beliefs are hindering the fulfillment of duties to the state.
