The lawyer Eugen Pătraş, who is the initiator of the establishment of the Romanian Orthodox Church in Ukraine, states that he was banned from entering the territory of the Ukrainian state for a period of three years.
Pătraş, who is also vice-president of the Romanian Cultural Center “Eudoxiu Hurmuzachi” in Chernivtsi, said that the decision was adopted by the Security Service of Ukraine. He believes that the measure is related to his involvement in the project to establish the Romanian Orthodox Church in Ukraine.
“I found out on the 19th, three days ago, when I was leaving for Chernivtsi. In customs, the border guards informed me of the decision of the Security Service of Ukraine, ban for three years. Obviously, as usual, it does not indicate a legal basis and I say from the start that legal reasons do not exist. The real reasons are that I am actively involved in defending the rights of the Romanian community in Ukraine, which is not going through the happiest period of its existence. On the one hand, the authorities are fighting with the school, and now the church is also under heavy test. I got involved in the project of the soul and as much as possible for the community, in the sense of establishing the religious organization Orthodox Church in Ukraine and I am the representative of the initiative group for the registration of the Romanian Orthodox Church in Ukraine”, said the lawyer.
Considered one of the most important leaders of the Romanian community in Chernivtsi, Pătraş claims that he will notify both the Romanian and Ukrainian authorities regarding the ban imposed on him.
“Today I submitted a memorandum to the Patriarchate (…). At the beginning of next week, I will submit to the Government and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and I will certainly make an approach to the Security Service of Ukraine, to explain to me what the legal grounds are”, added Eugen Pătraş.
Source: www.cotidianul.ro
