RUSSIA BANS BOOKS BY METROPOLITAN ANDREI SHEPTITSKY AND PATRIARCH IOSYF SLIPYJ (UGKTs)
Russia has included even religious literature in a list of prohibited Ukrainian books that allegedly pose a threat to the Russian World. This was stated by the first deputy chairman of the Goskomteleradio of Ukraine, Bogdan Cherbak, in an interview with the newspaper Den ["Day"]
"Russians prohibit in their country Ukrainian books that, in their opinion, bear a threat to the Russian World. Thus, for example, in this country three of my books are banned, in particular the collection Knights of the Spirit, devoted to Ukrainian Vestnikovtsy poets (Elena Teliga, Oleg Olzhich, Evgeny Malaniuk, and others). Ukrainian religious literature is also banned in Russia: the books of Metropolitan Andrei Sheptitsky and Patriarch Iosyf Slipyj, even those that speak about performing religious rituals. The question arises: what are the criteria? Obviously the ban falls upon everything connected with the Ukrainian idea, identity, and national liberation struggle," Chervak said.
He said that without awaiting the response of the parliament to the dominance of Russian books on the Ukrainian market, which often are pirated and instruments of the information war, Goskomteleradio issued to the State Fiscal Service a list of separatist literature that was published in Russia and imported to Ukraine with the aim of political destabilization of the situation.
"Accusations immediately showered down on Goskomteleradio. First, we were told that in banning books we are acting like Russia. And second, many insist that by such methods we simply will not be able to solve the problem and Russian books will still remain on the market. But one should not compare our actions with the Russian actions. We are erecting a barrier exclusively to ideological literature, literature whose goal is the liquidation of the Ukrainian state," he emphasized.
The first vice-chairman of Goskomteleradio emphasized that systemic changes are needed in Ukraine—the introduction of copyright and licensing, introduction of changes in legislation. This was reported by Ukrinform. (tr. by PDS, posted 30 October 2015)n
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