PROTECTION OF LAND OWNERSHIP RIGHTS

The head of the Krasnyansk village council, Vitaliy Maslyuk, provided the community representatives with a detailed report

on the work of the village council executive committee and the head for 2010 and the beginning of 2011, and raised pressing issues of the community’s socio-economic development.

In particular,

the head of the village council noted:

–

that not all villagers have yet properly drawn up lease agreements for land shares with a local agricultural enterprise;

–

many citizens who have purchased estates in the villages of Krasnyanska village council (Krasny, Skoryntsi and Zolotyntsi) and do not live there, do not maintain their “estate” in proper condition, do not clean the yard

and do not repair collapsing fences;

–

the village council does not have enough funds to clear roads in winter, repair roads in the village, restore street lighting, etc.;

–

but despite the difficult economic situation, the village council leadership is trying to solve the urgent issues of the villagers and the community together with the district authorities and local entrepreneurs and agricultural producers.

During public hearings, residents of the Krasnyansk village council actively raised issues regarding the privatization of household plots, problems with property shares, the development of personal farms, difficulties in using distributed land plots, and issues of land improvement. The poor quality of roads within the village council

and the lack of their own fire brigade caused particular concern among the villagers.

The speech of the leading Krasnyansk milkmaid can be called a cry of the soul, who complained that today the purchase price for milk is only 1.80 UAH per liter and it is more profitable for her to put her cattle “under the knife” for meat than to work at a loss.

As noted by Igor Puzan, Head of the Department for Mass Media and Public Relations of the Main Department of the State Land Committee in Chernihiv Oblast, villagers need to use their right to free privatization of land plots and not delay with the registration of state acts, because land is a priceless treasure that the state provides for free. Will their children have such a free right?

He also noted that the village council budget could

be significantly replenished due to the receipts of funds for the use and lease of land, if all enterprises and entrepreneurs properly registered their land relations with the community.

Deputy Head of the RDA Mykola Ganzha noted the high professionalism and responsibility of the Head of the Krasnyansk Village Council, Maslyuk V. O., in preparing and holding general meetings, in his work, and promised

support for the district authorities in solving pressing problems.

Deputy of the Chernihiv District Council Volodymyr Chaus promised that he would keep a special eye on the urgent problems of the residents of the Krasnyansk Village Council, in particular, he would help resolve the issue with the district road department regarding the involvement of special equipment to improve the quality of the road surface on the territory of

Krasnyansk Village Council. Deputy Chaus also thanked the head of Maslyuk V. O. for his responsible attitude towards solving the problems of the Krasnyanska community and for mutual understanding and fruitful cooperation.

In general, the participants of the meeting noted that an important prerequisite for the socio-economic development of the community and the observance of the rights of landowners should be the systematic cooperation of local governments, state authorities, agricultural enterprises and public organizations.

At the end of the meeting, with the assistance of

the executive director of the Chernihiv Public Committee for the Protection of Human Rights Viktor Tarasov and the deputy of the Chernihiv District Council Volodymyr Chaus

the collective of the local ensemble “Verbychenka” (artistic director Raisa Potiy) performed before the village community.

The event is organized by the Chernihiv Public Committee for the Protection of Human Rights within the framework of the project “Observance of the Human Rights of Peasants-Landowners and Improving Their Access to Justice in the Chernihiv Region” implemented with the support of the project “Development of Civil Society”, which is implemented by the United Nations Development Program in Ukraine and funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark during 2009-2012.