Ukrainian Canadians welcome Restitution Act

TORONTO - Canada's Ukrainian community has welcomed the tabling of a private member's bill, C-331, the Ukrainian Canadian Restitution Act, by Inky Mark, member of Parliament for Dauphin-Swan River Manitoba, in the House of Commons on April 4.

Commenting on the bill, the chairman of the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association, John B. Gregorovich, said: "A few elderly survivors of Canada's first national internment operations are still alive. Passing MP Mark's bill would ensure that the nation remembers what they needlessly endured. By providing for historical markers at all of the internment camp sites and for the development of educational materials and a permanent museum recalling this unfortunate episode in Canada's history, this act would resolve our community's calls for acknowledgment and restitution and do so in a timely and honorable fashion. We call upon the Prime Minister, the Right Honorable Jean Chrétien, who in 1993 promised his personal support and that of the Liberal Party of Canada for redress to the Ukrainian Canadian community, to support Mr. Mark's initiative. We also ask all MPs in the House of Commons to recognize that the passage of this act will help make certain that no other Canadian ethnic, religious or racial minority ever suffers as Canada's Ukrainians once did."

"Passing Mr. Mark's bill would finally bring closure to our calls for the righting of this historical injustice," the UCCLA chairman underlined.

The Ukrainian Canadian Professional and Business Federation also expressed support for Bill C-331. President Oksana Bashuk Hepburn noted that "It is important for the government of Canada to bring closure to this long-standing injustice."

On March 1, the UCPBF wrote to Minister of Heritage Sheila Copps about this matter, calling upon the government to initiate a restitution package that includes:

o compensation that will have universal benefit by creating a world-class policy and research center dealing with Ukraine to ensure a better understanding of its unique role in global peace and security;

o compensation that will serve all Canadians by creating chairs of multiculturalism at post-secondary levels including internment study in history, civil societies, justice and human rights studies, and developing products for the public including documentaries, exhibits, literature, national/international commemorative prizes;

o compensation that will serve Ukrainian Canadians by enhancing the well-being and growth of Ukrainian Canadians through creation of a fund for public programming, heritage language programs, and funding research of the contributions of the Ukrainians to Canada;

o compensation that will serve the individual by, wherever possible, providing the option to the survivors or their relatives to receive some compensation.

The UCPBF president wrote: "We are very pleased that finally there is some action on this item. The Ukrainian Canadians have been making Canada the success story that it is today for nearly 120 years. They felt that the government has failed them for nearly a century in this matter. We hope that the government will support the Ukrainian Canadian Restitution Act."

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, April 22, 2001, No. 16, Vol. LXIX

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