On 11 May 2023, parishioners in front of a church in Shpola, a town in Ukraine’s central Cherkasy region, obstructed the work of a news crew working for Suspilne, Ukraine’s public broadcaster. Journalist Oksana Shved and camera operator Serhiy Yefimov came to film a meeting in front of the church, at which participants were set to decide on whether the parish should cease its affiliation with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate and instead join the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, a structure headed by the Orthodox Patriarch of Kyiv.
Supporters of keeping the Shpola church’s affiliation with Moscow reportedly argued with the pro-Kyiv faction, eventually also insulting the Suspilne film crew in vulgar form, grabbing Yefimov’s camera and otherwise obstructing the crew’s work. Suspilne Cherkasy, the regional news service of the public broadcaster, said it would file a complaint with police for obstruction of journalistic activities.