NEWS AND VIEWS: On Remembrance Day: what and why we remember (11/30/03)

NEWS AND VIEWS

On Remembrance Day: what and why we remember

Below is the speech by Andrew Gregorovich, member of Royal Canadian Legion Branch 360, at Ukrainian Canadian Memorial Park in Toronto, on Sunday, November 9.

Today we commemorate Remem-brance Day, a day for us to remember both as Canadians and as Ukrainian Canadians. On behalf of John Gregorovich, the president of the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 360 in Toronto, I would like to explain what and why we remember on this the 85th anniversary of the end of World War I on November 11.

It is appropriate that we meet in this park, the Ukrainian Canadian Memorial Park, at the Ukrainian Canadian Cenotaph, since our branch of the Royal Canadian Legion was responsible for establishing this park and its monument bearing a dedication in English, Ukrainian and French. Let us not forget that Poppy Week in Canada is a sacred week to remember all the Canadians who died in Canada's wars.

The first thing we remember as Canadians is the sacrifice and the service of so many Canadian soldiers, including thousands of Ukrainian Canadians. There were 10,000 Ukrainian Canadians who served in the first world war and 45,000 in the second world war. We should not forget that Ukrainian Canadians have fought for Canada in all our wars since the Boer War of 1898, including the Korean War. Canadian war hero Cpl. Filip Konoval at the age of 19 was awarded the highest British medal, the Victoria Cross, for bravery and valor in the Battle of Lens, France, in 1917. He is the patron of our branch of the Royal Canadian Legion.

We are proud of the fact that Ukrainian Canadians fulfilled their duty as citizens of Canada to serve in its armed forces more than a century.

I was not in the war but as a boy in Vancouver I heard about it on Canadian radio. In particular, I remember the famous bombing raid of American and British bombers in February 1944. What I did not know then was that those American bombers were killing Ukrainians who were slave laborers, or Ostarbeiters, in German military factories. Nazi Germany took almost 2.5 million slave laborers from Ukraine to Germany to help its war effort.

We remember with pride, and sorrow, that Ukrainians served in many armies in World War II including those of Canada, the United States, Great Britain, the Ukrainian SSR, Poland and Romania. Ukrainians were even in the French Resistance, fighting against the German occupation Army.

The dress rehearsal for the second world war took place on March 15, 1939, when Carpatho-Ukraine declared its independence from Czechoslovakia. On the same day, with Hitler's approval, it was invaded by Hungarian troops. Because of this the small Carpatho-Ukrainian army was the very first army to oppose Nazi Germany. As a result, we must remember that those Ukrainian soldiers were the first to be killed in armed conflict against Nazi Germany and its allies.

We must remember that just before the second world war on August 25, 1933, Nazi Germany became a partner of Soviet Russia when they signed the Nazi-Soviet Friendship Pact. Just one week later this opened the door for the German invasion of Poland by Hitler's army on September 1, 1939.

Today all of us are sympathetic to the plight of the American soldiers who are targeted in occupied Iraq. Some 240 have been killed during the Iraq War and the current occupation. But let us put this most recent war in comparison to the losses in World War II. Ukraine's Memorial Book for World War II has 250 volumes and lists the names and full biographical details. There were 6,019,000 casualties of Ukrainian soldiers killed, wounded and missing in action during that war. No country in the world matches Ukraine's military loss of 6,019,000. In World War II the United States had 405,399 military killed, Canada had about 42,000 military killed and Great Britain about 350,000. Germany lost 6.5 million soldiers and civilians dead.

We remember that, in addition to 6 million soldiers, Ukraine also lost up to 4 million civilian citizens killed giving a total of 8 million to 10 million killed according to the president of Ukraine. Among these were 600,000 Jewish Ukrainians killed by the Nazi German Holocaust. But many Jews were saved by Righteous, Ukrainians making Ukraine fourth out of 35 countries for the number of Righteous, according to Yad Vashem in Israel.

Most Ukrainian soldiers in World War II, over 6 million, fought in the ranks of the Red Army and later the Soviet Army. The First Ukrainian Front Armies captured Auschwitz, freed the last prisoners, and then went on to help capture Berlin together with the Belarus Front Armies.

We must remember that Ukraine also created two other armies, the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (Ukrainska Povstanska Armia, or UPA) and the Galicia Division. Both UPA and the Divizia were patriotic Ukrainian armies and many in their ranks fought against both Hitler and Stalin. We honor the veterans here today of all three armies, Canadian, UPA and the Divizia.

Perhaps you have seen the new documentary film produced by the Ukrainian Canadian Research and Documentation Center titled "Between Hitler and Stalin" and narrated by Jack Palance. For the first time it gives a basic review of the unknown and untold story of Ukraine in World War II. I think you will agree that this is a film that should be shown on Canadian and American TV.

Veterans, reverend fathers, distinguished guests, consul general of Ukraine, ladies and gentlemen:

Very few Canadians and Americans know that Ukrainians fought against both Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia during the war. We remember these soldiers because they fought for the freedom and independence of Ukraine. Ukraine is independent today, but perhaps its independence is fragile. This is why we must preserve the memory of our sacrifices for Canada, for Ukraine and for democracy.

I have told you what we must remember and now I will give you another reason why we must remember. We remember, we must remember, our part in Canadian and world history because no one else will do this for us. This is what we remember and why we remember this day.

"My pamiatayemo!" (We remember)

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