National Museum of History attempts illegal demolition of Tithes Church

Tithes Monastery. Photo: Novoye Vremya

The National Museum of History of Ukraine and the enforcement service have found a subcontractor for the demolition of the Tithe (Desiatynnyi) Monastery, reports the Dozor_kozak1 channel.

According to current legislation, clients do not have the right to demolish a church; this should be done by the religious community of the Desyatynna Monastery by court decision. However, a contract was concluded between the museum, a charitable foundation, and LLC 'Smile Construction', under which the museum hires the foundation as a contractor, and the latter orders the demolition of the monastery from LLC 'Smile Construction'. According to the contract, the subcontractor undertook to destroy the church within 10 days from the date of acceptance of the "Resolution on Involvement of the Economic Entity in Enforcement Actions."

This resolution was signed on April 26, 2024.

It should be noted that the National Museum of History does not have the right to dispose of any non-budget funds. The 800,000 hryvnias collected for the demolition of the church could only be spent on the technical documentation for the property.

Lawyers of Tithes Monastery believe that the National Museum of History of Ukraine and the enforcement service are committing an offense under Article 364 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

Earlier the UOJ reported that the National Museum of History of Ukraine opened a fundraiser for the demolition of the Tithe Church in Kyiv, and also speculated on what awaits the people who demolish shrines.

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