1997–2022
Roman Ratushnyi
Civic activist and scout
A Kyiv activist who, at 16, was among the students beaten when the Maidan protest was broken up, and who later saved the Protasiv Yar green space from developers. He volunteered to fight from the start of the full-scale invasion and was killed near Izium on 9 June 2022, aged 24.
Key accomplishments
- Took part in the Euromaidan; was among the students hurt when police broke up the protest on the night of 30 November 2013
- Led the “Protect Protasiv Yar” initiative (2018) and the NGO of the same name (2019)
- Won the return of Protasiv Yar’s green-space status from Kyiv City Council (2020); in 2022 the Supreme Court upheld the building ban
- Volunteer from the first days of the invasion and a scout in the 93rd Kholodnyi Yar Brigade; defended Kyiv and fought in Sumy and Kharkiv regions
- Order for Courage, 3rd class (posthumously, 2022)
Who he was
Roman Ratushnyi was born in 1997 in Kyiv, the son of Taras Ratushnyi, a journalist and activist in the “Save Old Kyiv” movement, and the writer Svitlana Povaliaieva. In 2012 he entered the Finance and Law College, where he studied law. He loved history and Stoic philosophy, which later gave him his call sign, “Seneca”.
His story
At 16 Roman joined the Euromaidan and was among the students attacked by the Berkut riot police on the night of 30 November 2013. After the Maidan he worked as a journalist.
In 2018 Ratushnyi took charge of the “Protect Protasiv Yar” initiative, and in 2019 of the NGO of the same name. A developer planned to build three 40-story towers on a hillside in central Kyiv; the activists camped there in tents and kept watch to stop the machinery, while lawyers represented them in court. Roman spoke publicly about threats made against him. In 2020 Kyiv City Council restored the site’s green-space status, and in 2022 the Supreme Court upheld the building ban.
From the first days of Russia’s full-scale invasion Ratushnyi volunteered to fight. He defended Kyiv, fought in Sumy region, and from April 2022 served in Kharkiv region as a scout in the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade “Kholodnyi Yar”. Roman was killed on a combat mission near Izium on 9 June 2022. His farewell was held in St Michael’s Cathedral and on Independence Square. He was posthumously awarded the Order for Courage, 3rd class (Decree No. 647/2022).
Why it matters today
Ratushnyi’s story shows that one person can protect part of their city from powerful developers, lawfully, through the courts and the community. In 2022 Kyiv named a street after Roman Ratushnyi, and in 2023 Kyiv City Council gave his name to the Protasiv Yar landscape reserve he had fought for.
