UOC wins appeal over demolition of Tithe Church

Demolition of the UOC's Tithe Church on the night of May 17, 2024. Photo: babel.ua

On October 1, a session of the Kyiv Appellate Economic Court took place regarding the demolition of the Tithe Church of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos, located in Kyiv. Archpriest Nikita Chekman, a lawyer for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, published a video message on his Telegram channel where he shared the results of the session.

The court upheld the appeal of the religious community "Tithe Church of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos" and overturned the decision of the Kyiv Economic Court, which had previously dismissed the complaint against the actions of the state executor. The appellate court’s decision states that the case has been sent back to the first-instance court for a new review.

In his statement, Archpriest Nikita Chekman noted: "We believe that the actions of the state executor, who unilaterally involved an economic entity to carry out this unauthorized demolition of the church, are illegal. We understand that this will not bring back the church that was unlawfully destroyed by godless people at this time, but we believe that all those who participated in these illegal actions should be held accountable before God and before the law."

He also expressed his gratitude to the court for its just decision: "We are grateful to the court for heeding common sense and making a lawful and fair decision. The fight will continue. In the first-instance court, we will prove the illegality of the state executor's actions, and we hope that all those responsible will be held accountable before God and before the law."

It is worth recalling that earlier, on May 17, the UOC's Legal Department appealed to law enforcement authorities, demanding an investigation into the circumstances of the demolition of the Volodymyr-Olha Church of the Tithe Monastery and the initiation of a criminal case over abuse of power by the state executor.

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