City without barriers

In Yekaterinburg, the protest was replaced by a dialogue, and the fence in the square was demolished. What next?

The grinder with a screech crashes into the steel crossbar of the fence welded to the pile. The workers pick up the yellow ribbed section and carry it to others - already sawn. The fence in the square near the drama theater, which for several days turned the center of Yekaterinburg into a risteline, disappears. He was put on Monday night, May 13. No one saw how this happened. And they disassemble during the day on Tuesday, the 21st. In front of people.

True, a man of 50 comes to accompany the fence, no more. The day before, about a hundred activists escorted protection and trucks, which took off the church of St. Ekaterina for workers, diesel generators and building materials from the construction site of the temple. People applauded after the leaving cars.

The decision to demolish the fence was made after the words of the Metropolitan of the Yekaterinburg Cyril: “Once the fence became a reason for contention, then this occasion must be removed and start a calm confidence conversation with all parties.”

Yekaterinburg feels his victory. Let the intermediate. The city forced itself to hear, and from the weekend there is a continuous dialogue: authorities with protesters, authorities with supporters of the construction of the temple and, most importantly, the protectors of the square themselves and supporters of the construction of the temple.

"We are not against the transfer of construction"

The meeting of the defenders of the square and believers takes place on Saturday evening. About 200 people with icons and signs “#Yazakhram” stand up on the steps near the fountain on Oktyabrskaya Square, to which the square adjoins. Together with them are clergymen.

- We want to reconcile with the protesters. Our action is for reconciliation, ”the man who introduced himself to Paul explains to me.

They begin with prayer: "Christ is risen from the dead."

Most of the "Temple Defenders" are people of 40-50 years old. Many came with children.

The prayer lasts about 20 minutes, after which the supporters of the temple "go to the people." Protesters willingly enter into dialogue with them.

“We have been asking for 10 years to restore this temple,” says Innocent Grigoryev, head of the Rook Center, which helps families in difficult life situations. - And for 10 years, the public has been adjusting our plans.

The Temple of St. Catherine in Yekaterinburg really cannot build since 2010 - residents of the city have already twice rejected the platforms proposed by the authorities.

- The temple should be restored because it is historical justice. This is our house, which was destroyed in 1930, ”continues Grigoryev. - The Russian Orthodox Church by law has the right to restore its destroyed shrines. And the temple should be built here because we really lack temples in the center. I regularly go to the service in the temple on blood, in the nearest temples - there are always a lot of people in services. And there is very little free space. We are the same citizens as the defenders of the square.

Dialogue with protesters is conducted by the employee of the Ascension Church of the Lord Father Alexander.

-In the 90s, a chapel of St. Catherine was delivered to the Square Square, which was previously called the Cathedral Square. In the tradition of the church - to put a chapel before the construction of the temple. And the church wanted to restore the cathedral in a historical place. But it was not possible to do this, protests began ...

“I don’t know how on the Square of Labor, but a lot of citizens are resting in this square: in the morning, dog lovers go here, then mothers with strollers, then older people who sit on benches, play chess and read books,” a woman interrupted the priest of about 60.

-The church cannot demand from the authorities of a particular site. We were offered a place in the square, we agreed, ”the priest explains. - I generally agree that the temple is built in the historical part of the city, not necessarily at this point. Just in the historical center. But will the protests will not begin there?

- We are ready to offer many places in the center, where people will only support the construction of the temple. Take even unfinished through the road: demolish it and put the temple.

The unfinished building in question belongs to the structures of the Ural Mining and Metallurgical Company (UMMC), one of the sponsors of the construction of the Church of St. Catherine. In its place, the UMMC plans to build elite apartments with a business center.

“If we are offered this place, I think the diocese will consider it,” summarizes the priest.

Supporters of the temple note that in this situation, local authorities are not least to blame. “In February, the City Duma was offered to hold a referendum on the construction of a temple in the square. For some reason, the deputies refused. So they got it, ”says the man who introduced himself to George.

“Both sides went too far, but personally, my opinion is that a fight with the participation of athletes of the Academy of Completions of the RMK was completely unnecessary,” says the volunteer of the Saint Foundation Ekaterina David. - After that, such a confrontation began that now, apparently, it is necessary to consider the possibility of building a temple in another place.

In general, all believers note:

• They want to restore the cathedral ruined by the Bolsheviks, because it is true historically;

• They do not fundamentally build a temple in the square;

• Any decisions must be made in the dialogue.

Defenders of the square support this position.

A survey or referendum

Now the main question is how to choose a new place for the construction of the temple and will it be new?

Russian President Vladimir Putin, as a “recipe” of the settlement of the crisis, proposed to conduct a “survey of residents of the microdistrict”, in which the square is located. The “microdistrict” was abandoned immediately: the fate of the square in the city center should be discussed by all Yekaterinburgers. But the protesters went on and at a personal meeting with the mayor at the City Hall of Yekaterinburg demanded that Alexander Vysokinsky conduct a survey, but a city referendum. The motivation is simple: the results of the referendum are mandatory, the results of the survey are only advisory in nature.

The mayor first tried to object that the referendum would cost expensive - about 120 million rubles. Then he was reminded that for the only repair of the monument to Lenin, the city plans to spend 105 million rubles. “But it’s time to demolish it,” the protesters believe. The mayor agreed to issue a referendum to the City Duma.

The concept “Temple instead of Lenin”, by the way, is one of the most popular among protesters. But against the demolition (and even transfer) the monument to the “leader of the world proletariat”, oddly enough, the Church acts: the rector of the temple on the blood, Archpriest Maxim Minyailo, on the air of “Silver Rain” called the idea of ​​erecting the cathedral instead of the monument “pure provocation” and stated that the protest in this case could be even stronger, including from the communists.

Alternative sites for the temple are now looking for the whole city: more than 2500 offers have already received the city hall.