The Roman Catholic parish of St. Nicholas in Kyiv has appealed to the Commissioner of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, regarding the prolonged delay in transferring the church to the religious community. For nearly 20 years, the issue has remained unresolved, despite relevant directives from the president in 2005 and a subsequent decision by the Cabinet of Ministers in 2020.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Critical Condition of the Church and Sabotage of the Transfer
According to the applicants, the church building is in an extremely dilapidated state, posing a danger to visitors. The religious community emphasizes that the transfer process is being delayed, despite the existence of a signed memorandum with the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine. Throughout 2025, the issue of the transfer remained unresolved, even after the Dnipropetrovsk District Administrative Court ruled in favor of transferring the building to the community, the appellate court upheld this decision, and the Supreme Court refused to open cassation proceedings.
Actions of the Ombudsman and Response from the Ministry of Culture
Dmytro Lubinets reported that he has sent an official request to the Ministry of Culture regarding the execution of the court ruling. He emphasized that there are no longer any legal obstacles to the transfer of the church; however, the ministry continues to delay the process by sending additional inquiries regarding the status of the building to the State Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience, even though the relevant circumstances have already been established by the court.
“However, the department continues to delay the process, sending additional inquiries to the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience regarding the status of the church, even though this fact has already been established by the court. The reality is that the execution of the court ruling by the ministry is effectively being sabotaged,” Lubinets wrote on Facebook.
As a result of a monitoring visit by the Ombudsman’s office staff to St. Nicholas Church, its critical technical condition was documented. The building is nearly in an emergency state, lacking proper fire and technological safety measures.
The Ombudsman called on the Ministry of Culture to immediately begin executing the court ruling, ensuring the rights of the religious community and eliminating the hazardous condition of St. Nicholas Church.