Lawyer: With 98% of traitors in SBU in Crimea, we don't demand its ban

Fr Nikita Chekman, the lawyer for the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. Photo: a video screenshot of the YouTube channel "Serhiy Shevchuk"

Fr Nikita Chekman, the lawyer for the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, stated that just as no one bans the SBU due to the presence of traitors among its ranks, it's unfair to accuse the whole UOC for isolated cases of collaborationism among clergy. He made these remarks in an interview with the YouTube channel "Serhiy Shevchuk".

He explained that in 2014, around 98% of special service employees in the Crimea defected to the enemy’s side, and after the full-scale invasion of Russia, Ukrainian officials covered those who were supposed to prevent the mining of the Kherson region.

However, according to the lawyer, even these circumstances are not a valid reason to accuse all law enforcers of betrayal.

"But for some reason, they don't blame the whole SBU. We must be objective, and as a lawyer, I cannot afford to blame the entire service. There are specific individuals who have committed specific criminal offences. There are relevant law enforcement agencies responsible for investigating and bringing all those guilty to criminal responsibility," said the priest.

At the same time, the Lavra’s lawyer acknowledged that there are also isolated cases of collaborationism among UOC clergy, but unlike the SBU example, these are single cases.

"These are individuals who believe in the idea of the Russian world, believe in something unclear. With their actions, they harm the Church's reputation and the state. But I want to emphasize that there are very few of such people... The law is the same for everyone, whether they are law enforcers or clergy," added Fr Nikita.

As reported, an OCU "cleric" was found guilty of collaborationism in Kyiv.

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