Human rights group created to protect Orthodox Communities in Eastern Europe

Banja Luka, Republika Srpska, August 7, 2018

A new advocacy group aiming to protect the interests of Orthodox Christians throughout Eastern Europe has been created.

The NGO “Public Rights Protection,” a co-founder of the new “Eastern European Rights Protection Group,” reports that it includes representatives of human rights and public organizations from Balkan nations.

The decision was made by representatives of human rights, public, and religious organizations namely from the countries of Ukraine, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia during the 38th session of the UN Human Rights Council from June 18 to July 6.

A memorandum on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s accession to the group was signed in Banja Luka, Republika Srpska on August 3.

The group was created to jointly protect the interests of Orthodox communities from various countries both in the sphere of the rights of religious organizations and believers, and to present a common agenda for Christians on various humanitarian issues.

Earlier during the 38th session, the parties approved the Geneva Declaration on the protection of Christian values and the rights of believers, noting the main directions of further development of the human rights movement.

In accordance with the joint agenda, “Public Rights Protection” submitted to the UN HRC the first set of documents on issues agreed upon by the participants concerning the rights of the canonical religious organizations of Ukraine, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia, all of which suffer from non-canonical organizations operating on the same territory.

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