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Roman Catholics, Muslims Dispute in Kamianets-Podilskyi

01.05.2008, [09:52] // Muslims //

Kamianets-Podilskyi– A Turkish minaret and minbar (pulpit) are being disputed in the central Ukrainian town of Kamianets-Podilskyi (Khmelnytskyi Region). A Muslim organization, Allah's Party, has sued the Roman Catholic community, demanding that it return the minaret and minbar. RISU’s Ukrainian-language site posted the report of correspondent Yulia Zavadska on 30 April 2008.

The claimant demands that “the Poles, guests of Kamianets-Podilskyi,” should restore the ruined minbar, stop excursions to the Turkish minaret, remove the statue of the madonna from it, and transfer the minbar, minaret and adjacent territory to the permanent free use of the Muslim religious community Allah's Party. The Catholics consider the claims groundless, saying the religious buildings were inherited by them due to the town's complicated history and it is impossible to separate them from Polish Catholic Church buildings.

The Economic Court of the Khmelnytskyi Region refused to satisfy the claimant's demands. The Zhytomyr Economic Court of Appeals also ignored the claim due to lack of evidence and failure to comply with certain requirements. The representatives of Allah's Party threaten to approach the European Court on Human Rights.