Although there are examples of violations, freedom of religion is much better in Ukraine than in Russia. And Ukrainians are likely to face restrictions on their religious freedom if Russia succeeds in occupying parts of the country.
Unclear anti-mission laws
The people of Crimea have felt the consequences of Russian legislation introduced with Russia's annexation in 2014. In Crimea, 22 people were fined in 2021 under the Russian so-called anti-mission laws.
Mission is vaguely defined in Russian legislation and laws are therefore arbitrary, violating people's fundamental rights. Olga Siberjova from the Sova Center for Information and Analysis in Moscow has stated that "virtually everything can be accused of being illegal missionary work". The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine concluded in 2021 that the issuance of fines in Crimea "significantly restricts the ability of religious groups to practice their faith."
On my trip to Ukraine in May, I met Pastor Igor, a refugee from Donetsk. He tells me how the regime in Russia looks down on evangelical Christians: "The regime in Russia sees evangelical Christians as something American. Russia is sure that it is not fighting against Ukraine, but against NATO and the West. Russia sees the local Protestant Christians as enemies."
The Danish European Mission is co-founder of the news service Forum 18, which monitors whether religious freedom is respected in the former Soviet states. Unfortunately, the pastor's statement is confirmed by a Forum 18 review of 108 convictions for so-called missionary activity in Russia from July 2020 to December 2021. The review shows that virtually all those convicted are Protestant or non-Christian minorities, including Muslims and Hare Krishna. According to the review, it is unclear whether even one of those convicted was from the Russian Orthodox Church under the Moscow Patriarchate, which officially supports Putin's war in Ukraine. Thus, there is a clear trend in the verdicts whereby Orthodox loyal to the Moscow Patriarchate are not affected by the anti-mission laws.
Conscientious objectors forced into war in Donbas
This development has been taking place since 2014, when pro-Russian rebel groups took power in Luhansk and Donetsk.
Igor explains: "I studied at a Christian university in Donetsk, which is currently taken over by Russian soldiers. There is a popular book we use for evangelism in Ukraine, written by Wilhem Busch, titled, 'Why do I need Jesus?' That book is no longer legal in the areas controlled by pro-Russian separatists. My good friend is a pastor in Donetsk. His church has also been taken over by separatists and is now used as a wedding hall. In Luhansk, all men are forced to fight against Ukraine. There have been many cases where people refuse to fight against the Ukrainian army. They are told they will be shot if they don't want to fight."
During communism in Ukraine, there were examples of Christians being secretly allowed to hold services in the forests and priests in underground churches being imprisoned. In schools, attempts were made to indoctrinate Christian children with atheism. Unfortunately, in Donbas, violations of religious freedom are no longer just something that happened under communism.
Facts: Non-Moscow faith groups under pressure in Donbas
The Luhansk People's Republic has outlawed all Protestant communities and non-Moscow Orthodox communities for re-registration. However, virtually no denominations have been subsequently approved.
Furthermore, an increasing number of Christian books have been banned in Luhansk because they are accused of being extreme, including even a translation of the Gospel of John from 1820, and a book by Billy Graham and Wilhelm Busch.
