Twenty-five years ago, on August 9, 1992, thousands of veterans of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) marched through the streets of Kyiv to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the founding of the partisan force.
An estimated 5,000 men and women, primarily from western Ukraine, the United States and Canada, dressed in full uniform and carrying flags of Ukraine and the black-and-red flag of revolution, rallied at St. Sophia Square to pray for those UPA soldiers who had fallen in battle and to call on Ukraine’s Parliament to recognize the Ukrainian Insurgent Army’s defense of Ukraine during the second world war.
The commemoration was part of a larger, three-day commemoration hosted in Kyiv. The events concluded with a concert on Independence Square. The UPA 50th anniversary observances also featured a conference at the Ukraina Palace of Culture and the Officers Building on August 8 and 10.
Few officials from the Ukrainian government attended the commemoration. Present were Member of Parliament Oleksander Hudyma, as well as Volodymyr Muliava and Maria Vlad of the Ministry of Defense. Ukraine’s Minister of Defense Konstantyn Morozov was invited to speak at the podium, but it was unclear if he was even in attendance at the commemoration.
Greeting the gathering were Mykhailo Zelenchuk, head of the Brotherhood of UPA in Ukraine; Lev Futala of Yonkers, N.Y., head of the World Brotherhood of UPA Veterans; and Volodymyr Mazur of Chicago, representing the leadership of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN). Mr. Mazur spoke on behalf of Slava Stetsko, head of the OUN.
During the ceremonies, many who spoke commented on the fact that few people would have imagined commemorating the 50th anniversary of the UPA in the capital city of a newly independent Ukraine. A prayer service was officiated by Ukrainian Catholic and Orthodox clergy, with each clergyman listing the names of those who had died from his parish.
The thousands then marched to the statue of St. Volodymyr the Great, singing songs of the UPA. A contingent of youths from the Ukrainian Youth Association, who were attending a summer camp in Chernivtsi, marched chanting “Hartuys,” while a contingent from Plast Ukrainian Scouting Organization formed ranks behind a Plast Ternopil banner. A prayer service by Catholic and Orthodox clergy was also offered at the statue of St. Volodymyr.
The procession then moved to Askold’s Grave on the banks of the Dnipro River, where a cross commemorates those who perished at the Battle of Kruty, Symon Petliura’s last major stand against the Bolshevik army in 1918. A moleben service was offered and flowers were laid on the memorial site.
Stephan Khmara, a national deputy in the Verkhovna Rada, urged the marchers to proceed down the Khreshchatyk, Kyiv’s main thoroughfare, despite the fact that a permit for the march there had been denied. A contingent of the Lviv division of the UPA had marched on the Khreshchatyk earlier that day; following the ceremony at Askold’s Grave, many did in fact march on the broad avenue. They were joined by numerous passers-by.
Founded as a formation of irregular units of a people’s army, the UPA was organized at the outbreak of the Nazi-Soviet war. UPA solders fought against the Poles, the Red Army and the Nazis. Under the command of Gen. Roman Shukhevych, the UPA numbered between 30,000 and 40,000 soldiers at the height of its ranks; some estimates place the figure at closer to 100,000.
Source: “Veterans of Ukrainian Insurgent Army gather in Kyiv to mark 50th anniversary,” by Khristina Lew, The Ukrainian Weekly, August 23, 1992.