Police with Rifles and Baseless Complaints: How Two Activists Disrupt Operations of an Educational Center
With the support of international partners, local authorities, and concerned residents of the Vysochansk community, a cultural and educational center is being built in Vysoke, on the site of an old pharmacy, through the efforts of the High Youth Center. Natalia Pakhnina, a community volunteer, is a co-founder of this initiative.
Despite opening just a month ago, the center already hosts a children’s space, a hub for veterans and families, and plans to introduce more initiatives in the future.
However, obstacles have emerged — two local activists, Yevheniy Rybalko and Zhanna Bunina, have been actively trying to disrupt the center’s activities. Initially, this took the form of various complaints, but this time, Rybalko and Bunina escalated the situation by calling the police and an investigative team, claiming that a fence at the center was illegally installed. During their inspection, a children’s event was underway, attended by two female staff members.
“The police, carrying rifles, stood opposite our building, looking in the windows. I was with young children; they were all frightened,” said a center employee.
The police reportedly acted without notifying local authorities or the landlord. When a staff member questioned why detectives were investigating a fence, they responded that they had been summoned. Bunina allegedly acted aggressively and attempted to unlawfully enter the premises. This continued for three to four hours.
When military personnel and concerned individuals arrived, the activists were no longer present. In response, another police report was filed to document these alleged unlawful actions.
“These two individuals continually harass us, file complaints, block the work of the Vysochansk village council, and bring cases to court. To my knowledge, they have not won a single case,” commented Natalia Pakhnina.
“Our team from the NGO ‘Association of Youth Leaders of Ukraine’ and the Vysochansk village council consistently work hard to develop social infrastructure and demonstrate that improving the community is possible and necessary, yet such ‘activists’ are always eager to tear things down,” the volunteer emphasized.
At a time when Ukraine, and the Kharkiv region in particular, are enduring tragic events due to enemy attacks, such anti-Ukrainian actions are unacceptable. We urge all concerned citizens to share this information and report the illegal actions of Yevheniy Rybalko and Zhanna Bunina to ensure that they are held accountable under Ukrainian law.