For Immediate Release: Ottawa, 22 November 2017 Furthering its mandate to educate the public about the genocidal Great Famine of 1932-33 in Soviet Ukraine, the Holodomor, the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association (www.uccla.ca), working with the Free People movement in Ukraine, has unveiled four bilingual billboards in Kyiv, reminding passers-by to ask themselves who perished, why, and who was responsible. Commenting on this initiative the UCCLA’s chairman, Roman Zakaluzny, said: “The fourth Saturday of November is set aside in Ukraine and internationally as an annual day for remembering the many millions of Ukrainians starved to death during the Holodomor, in what was arguably one of the greatest genocides to befoul 20th century European history. We are particularly keen to demonstrate to the people of Ukraine how we have not forgotten who was responsible for this genocide. Nor do we forget that the perpetrators, their enablers and fellow travellers have not, and perhaps never will be, fully exposed and punished for what they did. Even so through out efforts we hallow the millions of victims and remind the living of why they must remain vigilant in defence of Ukraine.”

For immediate release (Gatineau / Ottawa, 15 June 2017) Members of the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association (UCCLA) reaffirmed their commitment to correcting an historical wrong in vowing to address the situation of the rundown and overgrown internee cemetery on private land in Spirit Lake, Que. In addition, UCCLA’s executive leadership, meeting at its annual conclave this year in Gatineau/Ottawa June 10-12: - received a sneak peek of the First World War internment display in the revamped Canada Hall at Canadian Museum of History, in Gatineau; - witnessed the global premiere of filmmaker Ryan Boyko’s documentary “That Never Happened: Canada’s First National Internment Operations;” - swore to ensure that no past or current members of the Soviet Union’s secret police force, the KGB, entered, re-entered or remained in Canada on any grounds, humanitarian or otherwise. UCCLA paid respects with a moment of silence, again, to Nellie (Carolka) Manko, a Montreal-born infant who was interned with her family in the Spirit Lake internment camp during Canada First National Internment Operations (1914-1920), Nellie died 102 years ago, aged 2½, in the Abitibi internment camp. This is the second year in a row conference delegates formally recalled Nellie, after first asking federal Heritage Minister the Hon. Melanie Jolie in 2015 to intervene for the purposes of commemorating and reconsecrating the internee cemetery at La Ferme (Spirit Lake), Que. Nellie’s exact gravesite remains unknown, but evidence suggests she could be one of the bodies buried in a gravesite the federal government downloaded to the Quebec government, which then sold the cemetery to a private landowner. To date, the minister has only passed the buck, telling UCCLA that is should take up the issue of a buried federal internee in a federal labour camp with the provincial government of Quebec. Also at the conclave, UCCLA observed the election of Dr Lubomyr Luciuk as president of its sister charity, the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Foundation (UCCLF), replacing outgoing president Andriy Harasymiw. Halya Wilson and Borys Sydoruk, both of Calgary, were voted UCCLF’s vice-president and treasurer, respectively, and Vernon, B.C.’s Andrea Malysh was picked as secretary. UCCLA, together with UCCLF and the Ukrainian Canadian Students Union (SUSK), also reaffirmed a commitment to continue to explore ways to partner with one another on various projects of mutual interest going forward. Commenting, UCCLA's chairman Roman Zakaluzny said: "Although another year has passed with little progress from the federal side, UCCLA remains hopeful that the Hon. Melanie Jolie will finally convince her colleagues in government to take responsibility and do what’s right to ensure that those 16 men and some children, including Nellie, buried in the bush on the site of Spirit Lake’s internment camp cemetery will finally find some peace. “On behalf of UCCLA’s supporters across Canada, I would also like to take the time to thank Andriy Harasymiw who, for the last eight years from his Edmonton home, has led the creation of the foundation and seen it fulfill its mandate of educating Canadians on civil rights issues, including the Holodomor and First World War internment operations, by funding dozens of worthwhile projects. These included placing hundreds of historical markers across Canada, funding the publication of numerous books, films and documentaries on the topic, as well as the day-to-day management and paperwork that goes along with running a registered Canadian charity. We welcome Prof. Luciuk to the role, and we thank Andriy for his past leadership.”

For Immediate Release (9 September 2016) - Ottawa A video series called "The Camps," prepared by Canadian Ukrainian film-maker and longtime UCCLA member Ryan Boyko, premiered Thursday. Illuminating the experiences of thousands of Ukrainians and other Europeans unjustly confined during Canada's first national internment operations, these short videos evocatively combine archival photographs with interviews featuring internee descendants, academics and local residents, shot on location at each of the 24 internment camp sites found across Canada. Commenting on this project, UCCLA's chairman, Roman Zakaluzny, said: "Decades ago, UCCLA spearheaded the campaign that led, in 2008, to the Government of Canada finally acknowledging what happened during the Great War and setting up the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund, which has provided the resources for this commemorative and educational film series. We are very pleased to see Ryan’s finished product, as these videos will most certainly help to remind all Canadians of what the innocents who were branded as "enemy aliens" had to endure between 1914-1920, not because of any wrong they had done but only because of who they were and where they came from. On behalf of UCCLA's members and supporters, we congratulate Ryan on his achievement." The first video in the series dealing with the Mara Lake internment camp in British Columbia can be accessed at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XVlDDYb8So. -30- 📷 The first video in the series dealing with the Mara Lake internment camp in British Columbia can be accessed at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XVlDDYb8So. Please like and subscribe to Armistice Films’ Youtube channel.

For Immediate Release - Calgary and Ottawa, 17 August 2015 News that Mikhail Lennikov, an (ex) Captain of the notorious Soviet secret police, the KGB, has "voluntarily" left Canada, after spending several years here claiming to be a refugee, then ignoring a Federal Court deportation order by claiming he had some right to "sanctuary" in a Vancouver church basement, has been greeted with pleasure by the organization most responsible for keeping Lennikov's illegal status in the court of public attention -- the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association (UCCLA). UCCLA's chairman, Roman Zakaluzny, said: "Lennikov had no right to enter Canada. His claim to being a refugee was dismissed by the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, an independent tribunal. When his appeal of that decision was overturned by a Federal Court judge, he decamped into a pre-prepared bolt hole in a Vancouver church, where he claimed a non-existent right to sanctuary, flaunting the rule of law, aided and abetted by people who ignored what the KGB was -- a criminal organization responsible for many crimes against humanity. We have consistently called for Lennikov's removal from our home and native land. Canada has no need to offer KGB men citizenship. UCCLA even offered Lennikov a one-way ticket back to his home town of Vladivostok. He didn't take us up. Instead he apparently went back to Moscow, where another KGB man, Putin, now rules. Lennikov's claim of being fearful that he would be harmed if he returned to 'Mother Russia' was obviously as bogus as his assertion that he was a refugee. We are glad he left and we hope he is gone for good. In our view, he is not welcome to return to Canada, ever. And those other NKVD/SMERSH/KGB men and women still here should also be identified and deported. We'll cover their one-way economy airfares from here to whence they came. Canada is a better place without the likes of a Lennikov."

For immediate release (Ottawa): November 27, 2014 The Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association continues to call on the federal government to remove (ex) KGB Captain Mikhail Lennikov from Canada. Recently, Lennikov was making plans to "build support for (his) movement" via a Skype forum on Friday, according to local newspapers. Lennikov was ordered deported from Canada more than four years ago, yet he remains in Vancouver, falsely claiming a "right of sanctuary" in a Lutheran church. Lennikov was a member of the KGB, the notorious Soviet secret police force, a brutal security apparatus responsible for the murders of millions of innocent people in the former Soviet Union and beyond. In particular, people were targeted for their religious beliefs, making it all the more odious that a church in Canada is giving him refuge. There is no law that prevents Canadian Border Services Agency personnel from entering the church and following the rule of law, yet they have not done so. "We commend the prime minister on his principled stand regarding Russian President Putin – an ex-KGB director – for his war against Ukraine. We call upon the prime minister to demonstrate his sincerity by removing Putin's man in Canada," said Roman Zakaluzny, UCCLA's chairman. "Lennikov had no right to enter Canada, has no right to remain here, and should long ago have been removed whence he came, as should any and all of Putin's men and women found here. Even one of them in our midst is one too many."

Annual conclave participants map out the year ahead and take time to reflect on accomplishments For immediate release (Ottawa): October 21, 2014 Meeting in conclave in Banff, Alta., on Oct. 19, members of the executive of the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association (UCCLA) discussed a wide range of projects it recently completed or will be moving forward with in the year ahead. After first noting the successes of Project CTO, which saw the simultaneous unveiling of 115 plaques across Canada recalling the internment operations of 1914-1920, the group noted the opening of the "Enemy Aliens" exhibit the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Foundation (UCCLF) helped curate at the Canadian War Museum. This exhibit will, it is hoped, travel to a number of cities across Canada during the next several years, bringing further attention to the experience of Ukrainians and other Europeans unjustly imprisoned and forced to do heavy labour for the profit of their jailers during Canada's first national internment operations. The group also discussed steps that UCCLA needs to take to remove veterans of the KGB from Canada, proposed new fellowships providing support for students and others involved in the arts and legal fields, and began deliberations on hosting an international symposium regarding Winnipeg’s Canadian Museum for Human Rights controversy. Concerns about the lack of inclusiveness in hallowing the memory of all of the victims of Nazism at the Canadian national Holocaust memorial in Ottawa were also raised. While in Banff, several members of UCCLA participated in a conference, "The Great War, Canada and the Internment of Enemy Aliens, 1914-1920," sponsored by the Wirth Centre for Austrian and Central European Studies and the Canadian Institute for Ukrainian Studies. Members also visited the new Parks Canada exhibit dealing with the internment operations at the Cave and Basin site, in Banff National Park, ending their conclave by agreeing to hold next year's meeting in the Maritimes. UCCLA's chairman, Roman Zakaluzny, said: "We continue to be a project-driven and all-volunteer group, that has time and again demonstrated an ability to sustain initiatives we believe raise the profile of our community, nationally and internationally. We are looking forward in the next few years to working with several national museums not only to recall the internment operations and War Measures Act, but to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Cpl. Filip Konowal's valour at the Battle of Hill 70, not only in Canada but in France, the UK, and Ukraine. “Over the next 12 months in which Canadians will, of course, vote in a federal election, we shall continue to insist that all of the exhibits in the taxpayer-funded Canadian Museum for Human Rights be revised so that they become comparative, thematic, and inclusive. We plan to help stage a major international conference on why that is both appropriate and essential if this national museum is to have genuine pedagogical importance. Finally, we remain committed to ensuring that no veterans of the Soviet secret police remain in this country – the fact that some do, to this day, is a travesty of justice and an affront to the memory of the many millions who fell victim to Communism as well as their descendants, of whom millions live in Canada."

Kim Pawliw, internee descendant, cuts the ribbon opening the ‘Enemy Aliens’ exhibit at the Canadian War Museum, 2 October 2014 – Left to Right: Dr L Luciuk (UCCLA), Mark O’Neill (CEO, Canadian Museum of History), Ambassador of Ukraine Vadym Prystaiko, Kim Pawliw, Rev Dr Petro Galadza, Jim Whitham (CEO, Canadian War Museum) and Dr John Maker CWM).

UCCLA - For immediate release (Lethbridge, Calgary, Ottawa) – Oct. 29, 2013 On Tuesday, 29 October 2013, at 1:30 pm, a commemorative plaque recalling the internment of Ukrainians and other Europeans during the First World War was unveiled at the Lethbridge Exhibition. One of 24 camps set up during Canada’s first national internment operations, most of the prisoners were civilians who had immigrated from the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The camp was in operation from 30 September 1914 to 7 November 1916. Other camps remained open until the spring of 1920. Internees were forced to do heavy labour for the profit of their jailers and suffered other state-sanctioned indignities, not because they had done anything wrong but only because of who they were and where they had come from. The commemorative plaque was placed by the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association, in cooperation with the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund and the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Foundation. This is the 22nd such plaque placed by UCCLA. Just two more First World War-era internment camp sites remain to be memorialized: Montreal and Halifax.

Оголошення від Cambridge Ukrainian Studies Двохсотріччя від дня народження Тараса Шевченка надає нам привернути зацікавлення до цієї постаті міжнародних ЗМІ. Намагаючись представити двохсотліття як цілісну подію, щоб зосередити увагу громадськості, у жовтні 2013 року, Українськими студіями в Кембриджському університеті буде запущено веб-сайт www.Shevchenko2014.org. Основною функцією сайту буде надання відвідувачам швидкого доступу до оголошень заходів, пов’язаних з відзначенням двохсотріччя від дня народження Шевченка у всьому світі, з датами, місцями проведення подій та іншою інформацією, бажано англійською мовою. Для цього використовуватиметься інтерактивний календар. Ми б хотіли, щоб Ваші заходи з нагоди святкування двохсотріччя також з’явилися у цьому календарі. Тому просимо надсилати новини та оголошення ваших заходів (бажано англійською мовою), до Вікторії Лeвер (Mrs Victoria Lever, адміністраторка відділу славістики Кембриджського університету) на електронну адресу slavon@hermes.cam.ac.uk не пізніше 16 вересня 2013. Щиро дякуємо за співпрацю. Announcement from Cambridge Ukrainian Studies The Shevchenko Bicentennial is a special opportunity for us to cultivate the profile of one of the world’s great poets and capture the interest and imagination of the international media. In an effort to present the bicentennial as a cohesive event and focus the public’s attention, Cambridge Ukrainian Studies will be launching the website www.Shevchenko2014.org in October 2013. The site’s main function is to offer visitors quick, ‘one-stop’ access to listings of Shevchenko 2014-related events around the world, with dates, locations, and other information, preferably in English. An interactive calendar will be used for this purpose. We would like to feature your Shevchenko 2014 events on this special calendar. Please send news and announcements of your activities (preferably in English) to Mrs Victoria Lever (Administrator of the Department of Slavonic Studies at the University of Cambridge) at slavon@hermes.cam.ac.uk by 16 September 2013. Many thanks for your partnership and collaboration. www.CambridgeUkrainianStudies.org

For Immediate Release (Ottawa, 14 March 2013) Continuing with its campaign to rid Canada of known veterans of various Soviet secret police groups, like the NKVD, SMERSH and KGB, the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association has launched yet another postcard campaign alerting the Government of Canada to the presence of such individuals in Canada, in particular singling out (ex) Captain Mikhail Lennikov who was ordered deported more than 3 years ago yet remains in Vancouver, claiming a (non-existent) "right of sanctuary" in an east end Lutheran church. "We find it hard to believe that the Canada Border Services Agency is unable to remove a man whose claim to being a refugee was rejected, who was ordered deported by a federal court judge, and whose whereabouts are well known to the authorities. His continued presence in this country calls into question the rule of law and Canada's immigration and refugee determination procedures. Lennikov had no right to enter Canada, has no right to remain here, and should long ago have been removed whence he came, as should any and all ex-NKVD and ex-KGB men and women found here. Even one of them in our midst is one too many," said Roman Zakaluzny, UCCLA's chairman.

For Immediate Release (Ottawa, 7 March 2013) Following the recent leak of a report titled "Gallery Profiles," prepared by the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association has reacted by expressing its disappointment and dismay over the CMHR's contents. UCCLA's chairman, Roman Zakaluzny, said: "Not only does this taxpayer-funded national museum elevate the suffering of one community above all others – which most Canadians oppose – but it excludes most Ukrainian-related content. For example, the genocidal Great Famine of 1932-1933 in Soviet Ukraine, the Holodomor, is relegated to a light-table treatment in a secondary gallery, even though as many as 4.3 million Ukrainians perished in the first six months of 1933 alone. And, despite the fact that there was a receiving station for 'enemy aliens' in Winnipeg during Canada's first national internment operations, this Canadian story is referenced only once, in passing. It seems obvious that the Ukrainian Canadian community is being punished for having publicly raised principled and legitimate objections about the CMHR's contents and governance. "It's very disheartening to think that Canadian taxpayers will be spending hundreds of millions of dollars in perpetuity on a museum so obviously out of touch with public opinion and so partisan and ahistorical in its portrayal of the human rights story."

UCCLA MEDIA RELEASE - Ottawa After decades of effort, spearheaded by the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association and its supporters, a redress settlement was reached between the Government and Canada and the Ukrainian Canadian community, in 2008, leading to the creation of a $10-million educational and commemorative endowment managed by the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund. Simultaneously, Parks Canada was provided with the resources required to build a permanent exhibit about Canada's first national internment operations, at Cave & Basin, in Banff National Park. Located in the immediate vicinity of one of the two internment camps that existed in Banff from 14 July 1915 to 15 July 1917, this permanent display will provide visitors with an opportunity to learn about this still-little known episode in Canadian history while also hallowing the memory of those unjustly branded as "enemy aliens" and herded into 24 camps across Canada. This new exhibit will officially be opened on Thursday, 20 June 2013. To increase public awareness about this event, UCCLA has begun mailing invitations postcards to internee descendants, Canadian parliamentarians, Senators, the media, and others who were involved with or interested in the redress campaign, inviting them to attend the opening day ceremonies. Commenting, UCCLA's chairman, Roman Zakaluzny, said: "Having a pavilion dealing with Canada's first national internment operations, in the historic heart of Canada's most famous national park, and so close to the site of an actual camp where the internees were once held, is a remarkable achievement, one that came about only thanks to the dedication of many UCCLA volunteers and our friends, over almost a quarter of a century of effort. “When we began there were many naysayers and doubters, but the UCCLA team persevered, knowing that righting this historic injustice was the right thing to do. We thank the Government of Canada and Parks Canada, for working with us and other groups, to open this exhibit in June. By doing so, we will honour the wishes of the late Mary Manko Haskett. She was a Canadian-born internee. Mary never tired of reminding us about how important it was to remember what happened so that, perhaps, no other Canadian ethnic, religious or racial minority will ever again have to endure what Ukrainians and other Europeans did during this country's first national internment operations, not because of any wrong they had done but only because of who they were, where they had come from." To increase awareness of the opening of a museum of internment operations in Banff, Alta., on June 20, 2013, UCCLA has begun mailing these postcards to internee descendants, Canadian parliamentarians, Senators, the media, and others who were involved with or interested in the redress campaign, inviting them to attend the opening day ceremonies. The Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association (L'Association ukrainienne-canadienne des droits civils) is a non-partisan, voluntary, non-profit research and educational organization committed to the articulation and promotion of the Ukrainian Canadian community's interests and to the defence of the civil liberties and human rights of Ukrainians in Canada and elsewhere.