Archbishop Markell Alerts UN to Human Rights Violations Against Orthodox Believers in Moldova

OCP News Service – 19/06/2025

Geneva – Switzerland: Archbishop Markell of Balti, a prominent hierarch of the Orthodox Church of Moldova, addressed the 59th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on June 17, 2025, to report on alleged violations of the rights of Orthodox believers in Moldova. The session is ongoing from June 16 to July 9.

Archbishop Markell’s participation in this significant international event was facilitated by his accreditation with the human rights alliance “Church against Xenophobia and Discrimination.” This affiliation grants him permanent access to the UN headquarters in Geneva, enabling him to deliver oral statements and submit written statements to the UN system on behalf of the alliance’s member human rights organizations. In recognition of his new international engagement, Archbishop Markell has also received the status of a UN human rights defender, aligning with international standards for protecting human rights (Patriarchia.ru, June 18, 2025).

During his address, Archbishop Markell highlighted several critical issues concerning the Orthodox Church of Moldova:

• Property Disputes and Reverse Restitution: The Archbishop informed UN structures about ongoing lawsuits challenging the Orthodox Church of Moldova’s rights to previously transferred church and monastery buildings. Representatives of the “Church against Xenophobia and Discrimination” alliance expressed concern, emphasizing that from a legal and international law perspective, “reverse restitution”—the reclamation of property previously returned to the Church—is impermissible. The existence of such litigation, they argued, indicates the state’s disregard for the rights of a religious denomination that has long been the legal owner and bears the maintenance costs (Patriarchia.ru, June 18, 2025).

• Violation of Freedom of Movement: Cases of restricted movement for Orthodox Church of Moldova believers were presented, including reports of “excessively long searches at border crossings” and “unjustified application of fines for ‘electoral corruption.'” Particular attention was drawn to three specific incidents on April 17, April 18, and May 22, 2025, where Archbishop Markell’s pilgrimages to Jerusalem were allegedly disrupted. The appeals noted that preventing religious leaders from participating in pilgrimages and interfaith meetings contradicts Moldova’s stated respect for religious freedom (Patriarchia.ru, June 18, 2025).

• Unequal Treatment Compared to Bessarabian Metropolis: Archbishop Markell drew attention to apparent disparities in the Moldovan authorities’ treatment of the Orthodox Church of Moldova versus the Bessarabian Metropolis of the Romanian Orthodox Church. Human rights activists claim the Bessarabian Metropolis receives extensive state support, including being allowed to accept foreign funding, unlike the Orthodox Church of Moldova. There are also indications of tacit state support for the Bessarabian Metropolis during transitions of religious communities from the Orthodox Church of Moldova to its jurisdiction (Patriarchia.ru, June 18, 2025).

Archbishop Markell conveyed his hope that Moldovan authorities would revise their policies towards Orthodox Church of Moldovabelievers, bringing them into compliance with European and international standards for the protection of religious freedom and human rights.

Written statements detailing these issues have been published on the UN website under the names of the human rights organizations supporting Archbishop Markell’s position. The alliance plans to continue its work to protect the rights of Orthodox believers in Moldova on international platforms, with lawyers monitoring religious freedom and analyzing appeals from Orthodox Church of Moldova faithful regarding their rights and freedoms.

These concerns echo previous reports, as problems regarding violations of the rights of Orthodox believers in Moldova were also raised during an OSCE meeting in Vienna, Austria, on June 2-3, 2025 (Patriarchia.ru, June 18, 2025).

Source:
OCP News Service