JPTi Submits UN Complaint Against Estonia for Violations of Religious Freedom and Calls for Restoration of Estonian Orthodox Christian Church Leadership
- Intern JPTi
- 5 minutes ago
- 1 min read
On 14 May 2025, Justice pour Tous Internationale (JPTi) formally submitted a comprehensive complaint to the United Nations Special Procedures concerning grave violations committed by the Republic of Estonia against 170,000 adherents of the Estonian Orthodox Christian Church (EOCC) and its canonical head, His Eminence Metropolitan Evgenii.
Despite a prior presidential veto citing unconstitutionality, the Estonian Parliament is now poised to reintroduce legislation that would compel the EOCC to sever its centuries-old canonical ties with the Moscow Patriarchate or face forced deregistration. This would effectively constitute a state-orchestrated schism and coerced religious realignment—actions explicitly prohibited under international human rights law, including Article 18(2) of the ICCPR.
🔹 JPTi calls for the immediate and unconditional reinstatement of Metropolitan Evgenii’s residence permit, which was revoked on vague national security grounds, without charges or adversarial procedure. His expulsion has deprived 170,000 Orthodox believers of episcopal guidance and sacramental continuity.
“What the Estonian authorities are attempting to engineer under the guise of protecting national security is not reform, but a state-orchestrated schism,” stated Sharof Azizov, Executive Director of JPTi. “Refusal to accept a state-mandated realignment is not disloyalty, but a protected act of Orthodox conscience under international law.”
🕊 Religious freedom, the forum internum, the ecclesiastical autonomy of Orthodox Christian believers, and the right to maintain one’s canonical identity are not matters of political discretion—they are non-derogable rights protected under international law.
📄 Read the press release and full complaint submitted to the UN here:
Read the press release and the full complaint in Russian here :