It was an embarrassing event in the Canadian Parliament in late September as Ukrainian Nazi-linked veteran Yaroslav Hunka was honored as a World War II “hero.” Upon finding this out, Canadian officials scrambled to save face. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed that this was “deeply embarrassing.” House of Commons Speaker Anthony Rota, after getting more information about Hunka (after the fact), regretted his decision to invite him. Democracy Now interviewed Ukrainian journalist Lev Golinkin about this revelation.
It is rather irresponsible that there was no relevant research done on Hunka’s history before anything occurred. Perhaps Canadian officials rushed to prop up Hunka as it relates to the Russia-Ukraine War, of which Canada is a supporter. What is also irresponsible is the standing ovation Hunka got in the parliament, although at the time the audience was unaware of Hunka’s history.
According to the BBC, Hunka served in the 14th Waffen-SS Grenadier Division during World War II. The soldiers in the Division were mainly Ukrainian, and under Nazi command. Heinrich Himmler, who systematized the Nazi policy of genocide against Jews and other “undesirables,” paid a visit to the Division and was very proud of its support for the cause of the Third Reich.
Hunka kept a journal of his time in the 14th Waffen-SS Grenadier Division. In it, Hunka described the Nazis as “mystical German knights” and was in awe of them. Hunka wrote that his service to the Division was the happiest time of his life.
Meanwhile, Nazi Germany was carrying out its genocidal policies. In Berezhany, where Hunka was born, 12,000 Jews were living there and were attempting to flee so they would not be eventually targeted by the Nazis. Many could not escape. Max Blumenthal, Editor-in-Chief of The Gray Zone, gave detailed examples of the number of Jews murdered by the Nazis:
“During the Holocaust, on Oct. 1941, 500-700 Jews were executed by the Germans in the nearby quarries. On Dec. 18, another 1,200 were shot in the forest. On Yom Kippur in Sept.1942, 1,000-1,500 were deported to Belzec and hundreds murdered in the streets and in their homes. On Hanukkah (Dec. 4-5) hundreds more were sent to Belzec concentration camp and on June 12, 1043, the last 1,700 Jews of the ghetto and labor camp were liquidated, with only a few individuals escaping. Less than 100 Berezhany Jews survived the war.” (more...)
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