(UTV|COLOMBO) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has intervened in an ongoing row over a new church in Yekaterinburg.
He said the Russian Orthodox Church “should unite people, not divide them”, and called for the plans to build a church in a park to be put to a poll.
The city’s deputy mayor quickly announced construction would be suspended while a survey was conducted.
It comes after four days of protests by thousands of city residents, during which 96 people were detained.
Protesters say that building St Catherine’s Cathedral on a park square will destroy one of Yekaterinburg’s few green spaces, which one local activist group says is “a favourite place for residents to relax”.
But the Russian Orthodox Church says it needs new churches to replace the many buildings destroyed under Soviet anti-religion laws.
What did Putin say?
Addressing a press conference in Sochi, Mr Putin asked if the protesters were “godless”, before adding: “People usually ask for a church, and here they are protesting against it.”
He said everyone had a right to a view, and if the protesters really were locals – and not “activists from Moscow who came to make a fuss and engage in self-PR” – then their views need to be considered.
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