On the Day of Remembrance of the Defenders of Ukraine, August 29, the National Military Memorial Cemetery was opened in the Kyiv region between the villages of Hatne and Markhalivka. However, residents of Markhalivka protested.
This is what Suspilne writes about.
At 9:00 AM, the first five servicemen, whose names remain unknown, were buried. The countryʼs leadership, including President Volodymyr Zelensky, Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi, the Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko, and the Minister of Defense Denys Shmyhal, arrived for the grand opening. Also present were relatives of the servicemen who plan to bury their relatives here.
Getty Images / «Babel'»
"A year of storage in the Kyiv crematorium, and then the urn with the ashes is at my house waiting for this event. There are many families in our community who do not have bodies from Mariupol, they may never receive them. And there must be a place here for relatives to come and pay their respects," says the mother of a soldier from the “Azov” Vira Lytvynenko.
According to the Minister of Veterans Affairs Natalia Kalmykova, this cemetery is the first phase with a total of 6 000 grave spaces. A second phase is also being built.
"Currently, there are already 360 columbarium places provided for urns with ashes. More will be added at other stages. Here, the state takes full responsibility for burials. And taking care of the graves will also be the stateʼs responsibility. Starting today, relatives can already start processing documents for burial here — in this place," the minister noted.
The cemetery can be reached by a special bus, which will depart from Teremky at odd hours every day, and from Hatne at even hours every day. The bus will also have a tour guide who will tell people the history of the memorial complex, as well as the history of Ukraine.
During the opening of the war memorial cemetery, Minister Kalmykova was also asked whether it was legal and safe to build this cemetery in this particular location.
"As throughout the country, here is groundwater and itʼs normal. To avoid any questions, a drainage system has been laid under all the paths here. All these paths are at a depth of 2.5 meters to 3 meters, and they work. And if you go and look into the grave now, itʼs completely dry," she replied.
Protest of local residents
In the village of Markhalivka (Kyiv region), local residents protested against the opening of the National War Memorial Cemetery, the Support Markhalivka organization reported.
The military and activists have repeatedly stressed that the burial in the chosen location, between the villages of Hatne and Markhalivka in the Kyiv region, threatens an ecological disaster. The land plot has a problem with high groundwater. The graves will be flooded, and this poses a threat to 12 villages in the Kyiv region.
Some villagers went to meet the first officials with posters and peacefully protested. According to activist, resident of Markhalivka and head of the NGO “Support Markhalivka” Oleksandr Davydenko, the people encountered a large number of security forces.
"Apparently, they received an order to pack. There are a bunch of police cars there. And all the women who were there with posters were packed. Our lawyer, who is traveling from Kyiv, is blocked. He is standing motionless with other cars in the direction from Kyiv to Vasylkiv. Traffic has been stopped, people have been neutralized, the authorities have gone all-in and continue to criminally push their policies, completely unwilling to listen to the people," he told the Espresso channel.
In the Telegram channel "Support Markhalivka" this morning, about a dozen Markhalivka residents wrote about the arrest.
According to Davydenko, todayʼs situation is a continuation of a year and a half of illegal development in the Markhalivka Forest, which has nature conservation status.
"Despite all the laws and court decisions won, a criminal crime continues here, namely, they continue to illegally build the so-called National War Memorial Cemetery, which is actually deprived of the right to dispose of this territory," he said.
According to the activist, the burial of soldiers in this place threatens an ecological disaster. On the one hand, the water is being poisoned with cadaveric poison, and on the other, three rivers are being destroyed.
"The Supreme Court confirmed the decisions of previous courts. And the last sixth court of appeal also rejected the appeal. Moreover, the other day a message was received that the cassation appeal was rejected. That is, the final decision has been made that this is a nature conservation area, construction — and in general, no actions other than nature conservation — are allowed here. But today, despite all the decisions made by the court, the constitutional order is actually being overthrown," the activist noted.
- On October 4, 2023, the Cabinet of Ministers decided to create a new state institution — the National War Memorial Cemetery.
- On December 8 of the same year, the Verkhovna Rada voted for bill No. 10289, necessary for the construction and operation of the National War Memorial Cemetery. The new site for the cemetery was determined to be a plot between the villages of Hatne and Markhalivka. Previously, it was planned to be located near the village of Bykivnya, and before that, on Lysa Hora in Kyiv.
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