For Immediate Release, 14 October 2012 (Ottawa) Meeting in the nation’s capital, the executive of the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association held a series of discussions that touched upon some of the more important issues for the organized Ukrainian community, including the continued presence of veterans of the KGB, the notorious Soviet secret police, in Canada. Recently 2 MPs of the New Democratic Party held a potluck Thanksgiving meal with an (ex) KGB Captain, Mikhail Lennikov, who remains illegally in Canada, despite an order for his deportation dating back to June 2009. UCCLA activists met with staff from the office of the Minister of Citizenship & Immigration, Jason Kenney, to press for the immediate removal of all KGB veterans in Canada. As well UCCLA reconfirmed its committed to continuing with efforts to ensure that all galleries in the taxpayer-funded Canadian Museum for Human Rights have thematic, comparative, and inclusive content and also voted to provide financial support for the “Tribute to Liberty” memorial to the Victims of Communism being built in Ottawa. On Saturday, 13 October, UCCLA held a memorial service for two Ukrainian Canadians, Michael Bahry and Thomas Konyk, executed on 14 January 1920 in the Peterborough County Jail, members of a so-called “Russian Gang.’ Two of its 5 members suffered judicial execution because of widespread anti-foreigner prejudice during Canada’s first national internment operations. The remains of Bahry and Konyk were reinterred in the Beechwood National Service, with a panachyda by Reverend Dr Petro Galadza. Before leaving Ottawa UCCLA’s executive and guests also paid their respects at the grave of the First World War Ukrainian Canadian war hero, Filip Konowal, whose valour at the Battle of Hill 70 was recognized with a Victoria Cross (see attached image). Next year’s UCCLA conclave is scheduled to take place in mid-June, to coincide with the opening of a pavilion dealing with the internment operations being opened at the Cave & Basin site in the heart of Banff National Park.

Ottawa (5 October 2012) - For Immediate Release Canada's Ukrainian community has expressed disappointment with NDP MPs Peter Julian and Don Davies for hosting a "potluck" Thanksgiving dinner in East Vancouver with a veteran officer of the notorious Soviet secret police, the KGB. Speaking on behalf of the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association, Dr Lubomyr Luciuk, said: "Millions of Ukrainians and other east Europeans now living in Canada were victims of the KGB. Mikhail Lennikov was a KGB captain. He entered Canada illegally, has no right to remain here, had his bogus claim to being a refugee rejected by the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, and was ordered deported in June 2009. His appeal of that decision was subsequently dismissed by the Honourable Mr Justice R Zinn of the Federal Court of Canada. Instead of obeying our laws, Lennikov went into a pre-prepared bolt hole in the basement of a Lutheran Church, where he remains to this day, claiming a non-existent 'right of sanctuary'. We find it reprehensible that Mr Julian and Mr Davies would sup with a fugitive who is openly flaunting the rule of law in this country. My late mother was a genuine refugee, one of the many millions of victims of Communism. Thanksgiving was always a day with cultural and religious significance for her and millions like her, a unique North American feast-day on which she thanked the good Lord above for having gotten away from the KGB's butchers. The NDP MPs hosting an ex-KGB man to Thanksgiving should be ashamed of themselves. We have called upon the leader of the New Democratic Party, the Honourable Thomas Mulcair, to distance himself from their unconscionable behaviour."

For Immediate Release - (Ottawa, 26 November, 2011) The chairman of the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association, Roman Zakaluzny, attended the official unveiling of the Spirit Lake Internment Camp Interpretive Centre on 24 November, 2011, extending congratulations to the centre's organizers, designers and managers for creating what has already become an important commemorative and educational venue recalling Canada's first national internment operations. “The hard work of James Slobodian and other members of the Spirit Lake Camp Corporation is evident in this museum, which poignantly recalls the experiences of the men, women and children once interned here, including several members of UCCLA's Redress Council such as the late Mary Manko Haskett, her daughter, Fran, and Stefa Pawliw. Years ago UCCLA placed a trilingual plaque at the Spirit Lake camp and unveiled a statute, 'Interned Madonna' here as well, helping set the stage for those who then went on to set up this very impressive centre." Also attending the event was Canada's Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, the Honourable Jason Kenney, who called the internment operations a "blight’" on the country's history. UCCLA was pleased to learn that the management of the Spirit Lake Camp Corporation is placing priority on now making the museum's exhibits bilingual, in response to concerns raised by the Minister and UCCLA's executive. “Mr. James Slobodian assured me and other VIPs attending this event that nothing is more important to him than ensuring that this museum's contents are available in both official languages of Canada,” said Mr. Zakaluzny. “We’re happy to receive this reassurance that soon the museum’s exhibits will be accessible to all Canadians, regardless of whether they speak French or English." All of UCCLA's plaques are trilingual, Mr. Zakaluzny noted, regardless of where they are located in Canada. For over two decades, UCCLA spearheaded the campaign for acknowledgement and symbolic redress for the internment operations, an effort that eventually led to the 2008 settlement that established the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund, on whose Endowment Council UCCLA has a permanent presence. The CFWWIRF provided major grants in support of the Spirit Lake Internment Camp interpretive centre, making it possible.

For Immediate Release - (Ottawa, 14 October, 2011) Concerned over the failure of the Canada Border Services Agency to remove a known veteran of the notorious Soviet secret police, the KGB, from Canada, the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association today announced that it has engaged the services of a private investigation firm to put a Lutheran church basement in east Vancouver under surveillance: "According to the Minister of Public Security, the Honourable Vic Toews, this KGB man had no right to enter Canada, and he has no right to remain. He is not a refugee, as confirmed by the Immigration and Refugee Board. His appeal of that finding was dismissed by the Honourable Mr. Justice R. Zinn of the Federal Court of Canada. He should have been removed immediately, but he claimed 'sanctuary' in a pre-prepared bolt-hole in a church basement, even though no 'right of sanctuary' exists in Canadian law. He remains there to this day, nearly three years later, openly defying our country's laws. Repeated calls upon the Government of Canada to enforce the decisions of both the IRB and the Federal Court of Canada have not been acted upon. As a result, we have begun another campaign calling upon Mr. Toews to instruct the CBSA to do their job while letting all MPs and Senators in Parliament know about what needs to be done and why. Until this KGB man is returned to his country of origin, we are placing the site under surveillance. If he attempts to leave his cellar, he will be apprehended and turned over to the RCMP/CBSA. "It's troubling that the enforcement of Canada's laws is being left to concerned citizens. But this man was a part of the Soviet apparatus, a willing and promoted enabler of a corrupt, undemocratic and violently ruthless secret police force. We must, at a minimum, ensure that the freedoms we enjoy in Canada are shared with the tens of thousands of real refugees who wish to come here."

For Immediate Release – (Ottawa, 14 October, 2011) Concerned over the failure of the Canada Border Services Agency to remove a known veteran of the notorious Soviet secret police, the KGB, from Canada, the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association today announced that it has engaged the services of a private investigation firm to put a Lutheran church basement in east Vancouver under surveillance: "According to the Minister of Public Security, the Honourable Vic Toews, this KGB man had no right to enter Canada, and he has no right to remain. He is not a refugee, as confirmed by the Immigration and Refugee Board. His appeal of that finding was dismissed by the Honourable Mr. Justice R. Zinn of the Federal Court of Canada. He should have been removed immediately, but he claimed 'sanctuary' in a pre-prepared bolt-hole in a church basement, even though no 'right of sanctuary' exists in Canadian law. He remains there to this day, nearly three years later, openly defying our country's laws. Repeated calls upon the Government of Canada to enforce the decisions of both the IRB and the Federal Court of Canada have not been acted upon. As a result, we have begun another campaign calling upon Mr. Toews to instruct the CBSA to do their job while letting all MPs and Senators in Parliament know about what needs to be done and why. Until this KGB man is returned to his country of origin, we are placing the site under surveillance. If he attempts to leave his cellar, he will be apprehended and turned over to the RCMP/CBSA. "It's troubling that the enforcement of Canada's laws is being left to concerned citizens. But this man was a part of the Soviet apparatus, a willing and promoted enabler of a corrupt, undemocratic and violently ruthless secret police force. We must, at a minimum, ensure that the freedoms we enjoy in Canada are shared with the tens of thousands of real refugees who wish to come here."

Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association L ’ Association ukrainienne-canadienne des droits civils Українське Канадське Товариство Захисту Громадянських Прав For Immediate Release: Ottawa (19 April 2011) The Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association (UCCLA) was established in 1984 and continues to advocate for the interests of the Ukrainian Canadian community. For example, UCCLA took the lead in the successful campaign to secure redress for Canada’s first national internment operations, organized an international campaign aimed at having Walter Duranty’s Pulitzer Prize revoked, honoured Ukrainian Canadian heroes like the Victoria Cross recipient, Cpl. Filip Konowal, and has unveiled plaques and monuments across Canada and in England, Wales, France and Ukraine recognizing our Canadian veterans and those who told the truth about the genocidal Great Famine of 1932-1933, the Holodomor. We have accomplished all that as an entirely volunteer based organization only because thousands of Ukrainian Canadians and others have donated generously in support of UCCLA ’s various initiatives. Thy Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR) is a taxpayer-funded national institution being built in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Its proposed contents and governance became the subject of legitimate debate in Canada recently, echoing concerns that have been raised publicly over the course of the past decade. UCCLA is not a member organization of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC) although we share its principled opposition to how the CMHR’s contents are being developed and its concerns over the current membership of the museum’s board of trustees, a body whose composition remains largely unrepresentative of Canada’s multicultural society. We have made our views on the CMHR known frankly and consistently, with due regard and civility toward those who hold differing opinions. We have not resorted to bullyboy tactics or name-calling in an attempt to silence those who do not share our perspectives. We therefore find the ‘open letter’ that calls for the silencing of Canadian voices in public discussions over the proposed contents and governance of a national museum nothing less than appalling. Needless to say we reject the antidemocratic stammering of its authors. Working with Canadians for Genocide Education, and other supporters, the UCCLA commissioned a March 2011 Nanos Research poll (www.uccla.ca). Its results confirmed that an overwhelming majority of Canadians (60.3% from all regions, ages and voter groups) want one of the CMHR’s twelve galleries set aside for the inclusive, comparative and thematic treatment of genocide. Obviously, that hall must include the Holocaust (Shoah) as well as the many other crimes against humanity and genocides that have befouled human history. Most Canadians do not favour elevating the suffering of any group above all others in this publicly funded national museum. We offer no apology for sharing the majority viewpoint (unscientific surveys conducted by The Winnipeg Free Press & The Globe and Mail resulted in even more decisive majorities against preferential treatment for any group in this museum). The recently manufactured outcry against UCCLA (and the UCC) surfaced only after these Nanos Research results were made public. Those now attempting the vilification of UCCLA are demonstrating a desperation borne out of having been forced to recognize that their biases find no significant support with the Canadian public. The ‘open letter’ issued by a small group - mostly non-Canadians – scolded UCCLA and the UCC, claiming we do not want the Holocaust included in the Canadian Museum for Human Rights and/or that we somehow wish to distract attention from the tragedy that befell the Jewish people and millions of others in the Second World War. That allegation is deceitful and slanderous. These same individuals claim that UCCLA and other groups somehow equate the Holodomor with the Shoah. That is also untrue. UCCLA believes that all 12 of the 12 zones in the CMHR should be thematic, comparative and inclusive. So while we want the Holodomor, arguably one of the greatest acts of genocide in 20th century European history, to be permanently included in the CMHR it belongs in a thematic gallery dealing with genocide, treated there along with the S h o a h and other crimes against humanity. That’s fair. Some who want UCCLA censured have no expertise in 20th century European history. Others are well known for making unfounded allegations concerning the nature and behaviour of the Ukrainian nationalist movements of the 20th century, assertions serious scholars have dismissed as prejudicial. While academic debate on any historical issue is welcome, the insertion of allegations about ‘who did what to whom and why’ before, during and after the Second World War is off-point, a dodge. Still, given the suggestio falsiour detractors have broadcast we are obliged to add a few paragraphs on this issue. Wartime collaboration existed in occupied Ukraine but was hardly unique to Ukrainians. Indeed, Ukraine lost more of its population under the Nazi and Soviet occupations than any other country in Europe. Most of the signatories of the ‘open letter’ should know that, being nationals of countries where there was far more support for anti-Semitism, fascist movements and the Nazis (and, in some cases, for the Soviets) than was ever the case in Ukraine. What is surprising is that amongst them are those who apparently want the world to believe that Stalin’s crimes against humanity and war crimes are less worthy of memory or attention than those of Hitler. In contrast UCCLA recognizes that the Nazi and Communist regimes both murdered millions of people. We reject puerile attempts at trying to quantify such misery in an effort to craft a ‘hierarchy of suffering. ’ We hallow the memory of all of the victims, equally. Beginning in 1984, some current members of UCCLA were involved in dealing with a stoked-up dispute over the alleged presence of ‘Nazi war criminals in Canada’. At that time (as members of the Civil Liberties Commission/Ukrainian Canadian Committee) our community’s position was that any person found in Canada who committed a war crime or crime against humanity should be brought to trial in a criminal court, regardless of when or where or why, or who that individual might be – whether identified by ethnicity, gender, religious confession, ‘race’ or political ideology. We reaffirm our commitment to that position and wonder why any thinking person would find it objectionable. Regrettably, Communist war criminals were not then, nor have they since, been made the subject of any serious Canadian, Ukrainian or other international investigations, or trials, even though no credible scholar would disagree that millions of innocents died at the hands of Communist regimes, and not only in Europe. We want any and all war criminals brought to justice. Certainly, UCCLA does not want any war criminals in Canada. Here in Canada the bogus declaration that several eastern European communities had harboured ‘Nazi war criminals’ was conclusively refuted by a federal Commission on War Criminals, headed by Mr. Justice Jules Deschênes, whose public report became available in 1986. Those who claimed (and some still do) that there were/are ‘Nazi war criminals’ in Canada were frustrated. So now they want to cement their calumnies into the halls of a publicly funded Canadian national museum. We shall resist. We also ask: why did these self-styled ‘Nazi hunters’ never actually name or provide real evidence to prove who these ‘Nazi war criminals’ in Canada’ are? We recall how their claims were considered and rejected by our courts. Why? – because they were utterly without evidentiary merit. These facts speak to an utter lack of credibility on the part of the organizations and individuals who provoked this controversy in the 1980s. Their tales are no more believable today and certainly have no place in an educational institution. Now that we have offered facts for the edification of these foreign and domestic censors let us ask them a question – why would the ‘Final Report of the Content Advisory Committee for the Canadian Museum for Human Rights’ (available at http://humanrightsmuseum.ca/aboutmuseum/corporate-governance/letter-stuart-murray) make not a single reference to Stalin or Mao Tse Tung or deal seriously with the Crimes of Communism? Surely at least some of them are aware of the millions who suffered at the hands of various Communist regimes (even leaving out Stalin’s Ukrainian victims whose numbers you delight in discounting, repeatedly trying to make sure Ukraine’s total losses stay at ‘only’ (!) 3 or 4 million). Did any of them register a single word of protest against the partiality of the CMHR’s above-referenced ‘Final Report’? Answer: No. Why? We have no interest in contending with non-Canadians over the contents or governance of one of our national institutions, any more than we would expect any of them to give much attention or weight to what a few Canadians might want included in a German or Russian or Israeli or even a Ukrainian museum. How we spend our tax dollars, how a Canadian national museum is governed, and what should be in it are matters for Canadians to decide - our business, not theirs . As for the few Canadians of Ukrainian heritage who endorsed this ‘open letter’ and wrote that UCCLA does not ‘speak’ for ‘their’ community, nor for them: well, we never claimed to. We actually do not know what ‘community’ they belong to. But we can see the company they keep and so we acknowledge that they do not stand with us. For such small mercies we are grateful.

For Immediate Release: Ottawa (8 April 2011) Misrepresentations have been broadcast about the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association's position with respect to the taxpayer-funded Canadian Museum for Human Rights. UCCLA wants all 12 CMHR galleries to be thematic, comparative and inclusive. We have never opposed the inclusion of the Shoah (Holocaust) in a gallery recalling the many incidents of genocide and crimes against humanity that have befouled human history. We are, however, against any group’s suffering being elevated above all others in this national museum, and that includes allocating a separate gallery for the genocidal Great Famine of 1932-33 in Soviet Ukraine, the Holodomor. Overwhelmingly, (60.3%) Canadians reject preferential treatment for any group. And we have never equated the Holocaust with the Holodomor or any other genocide. We do reject having any “hierarchy of suffering” implied or advocated in this museum’s galleries and exhibits. UCCLA's Animal Farm postcard does not 'paint Jews as pigs.’ Claiming that is a calumny. And those introducing offensive remarks made by Islamic extremists into this debate, then implying that UCCLA or its supporters share their views, is yet another example of deceit. The orchestrated outcry about the Animal Farm postcard reflects the desperation of those who, having failed to counter UCCLA's legitimate concerns over the proposed contents and ongoing governance of this national institution, are now resorting to bully-boy tactics and name-calling to obfuscate the truth - which is that MOST Canadians want this publicly-funded museum to focus on Canadian stories and human rights, not human wrongs. Genuine dialogue can still reconcile this controversy. We believe Israel Asper had a genuine and decent vision of what this museum could become, for Canada and the world. We believe his dream can still be achieved. But it won’t be if all we do is fall upon each other. The distinguished Holocaust scholar, Professor Michael Marrus, has said recently that the CMHR "needs a rethink." Exactly right. We've been saying so all along.

For immediate release (Ottawa) - 26 March 2011 OTTAWA— The chairman of the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association (UCCLA), Mr. R.W. Zakaluzny, expressed his thanks today to Mr. Tim Uppal, MP, whose private member's bill in the House of Commons has now received Royal Assent. Bill C 442, An Act to Establish a National Holocaust Monument, will commemorate all of the victims of Nazi Germany, including the many millions of Ukrainians enslaved or murdered by the Nazis and the Ukrainian survivors of the Holocaust who made Canada their home. "Canada welcomed tens of thousands of Ukrainians, Poles, Russians, Jews and others who were persecuted by the Nazis, who lost family members and friends during the Second World War, who saw their homelands devastated by both the Soviet and Nazi regimes, as so thoughtfully underscored in Professor Timothy Snyder's book, Bloodlands," said Mr. Zakaluzny. "Mr. Uppal is to be congratulated for crafting a bill that will ensure that all of the victims of Nazi Germany are remembered, a perspective too often lost when the focus is only on one or another community's suffering. We would also like to congratulate the Canadian Jewish Congress for its determination in moving this legislation forward. We know how hard it can be to get a private member's bill to the stage where it receives Royal Assent. And, of course, we will support a Canadian national monument that, as the CJC's Bernie Farber affirmed, 'will pay homage to the thousands of Holocaust survivors who made Canada their adopted home after the Second World War and contributed in remarkable ways to all aspects of Canadian society [and] honour those who perished, Jews and non-Jews alike.' A genuinely inclusive commemorative project of this sort  is one that we will support."

UCCLA, February 25, 2011 Politicians & groups that support substantial change to current makeup and design of CMHR Over the past few weeks and months, a number of prominent Canadians have come forward to note their objection on the record to the current iteration of the Canadian Museum of Human Rights being built in Winnipeg. Noting that it is a federal institution funded entirely by taxpayers, on par with other national museums like the Museum of Civilization in Gatineau, Que., and the War Museum in Ottawa, the growing list of politicians, experts and stakeholders below have noticed the inherent unfairness of a museum supposedly dedicated to the human rights of all Canadians favouring the story of just one or two groups. This list continues to grow and updates will be made as more people go on the record. – Dec. 23, 2010: Elizabeth May and the Green Party of Canada: "… we need to document the history of all Canadians and show how their experiences have shaped and will continue to shape our values of equality, dignity and inclusiveness. Genocide, no matter where or under what pretense it happens, is unacceptable to Canadians. The Green Party of Canada notes the genocide of between 7 and 10 million people in the (sic) Soviet Ukraine during 1932-1933 as an example that needs to be interpreted at the museum. Also, the history of internments during the two world wars should be better recognized by Canadians." – Jan. 20, 2011: Paul Dewar, MP (NDP, Ottawa Centre), NDP Foreign Affairs Critic, in a latter addressed to Hon. James Moore, Minister for Canadian Heritage and Official Languages: “Dear Mr. Moore, (UCCLA Chair R.W. Zakaluzny) points out that there will be two galleries in the museum devoted to the suffering of aboriginal peoples and of the Jewish people. All other crimes against humanity will (be) grouped in a third single gallery. He requests that other atrocities that have profoundly affected Canadians be accorded equal treatment in the museum. Mr. Zakaluzny raises an important and troubling point. I would appreciate it if you would address his concerns directly. I too am concerned that all atrocities be well addressed by the Human Rights Museum.” 📷 – Feb. 2, 2011: James Bezan, MP (Conservative, Selkirk-Interlake): " I believe that: The Holodomor genocide should have a unique, autonomous and prominent place in the CMHR; the CMHR Board of Directors contain respected members of the Ukrainian community with knowledge of the Holodomor and other human rights violations."  –  Feb. 8, 2011: Leon Benoit, MP (Conservative, Vegreville-Wainwright): "Benoit has heard from constituents about their specific worries  – that the Holodomor will be lumped into a general section of ‘Mass Atrocities’ which does not provide autonomy and permanent recognition of the event in the museum. They are also worried that other elements of their history will not receive ample recognition and be subsumed under other permanent exhibits promoted by the Content Advisory Committee Report. ‘I think the Advisory Committee is to be thanked for their report, but it is also important to remember that it is just a report,’ states Benoit. ‘It isn’t the final decision and it isn’t government policy.’ ‘I certainly believe that the Holodomor genocide should have a unique, autonomous and prominent place in the CMHR,” affirms Benoit.  “I also think it is quite important that the CMHR Board of Directors contain respected members of the Ukrainian community with knowledge of the Holodomor and other human rights violations. I’m proud of our Government’s support for the CMHR. I hope the Museum’s Board of Trustees finds the courage to provide the Holodomor with the appropriate and respectful recognition it deserves.” – Feb. 8, 2011: Devinder Shory, MP (Calgary Northeast) issued this statement (excerpts below): "…Our Canadian government was one of the first around teh world to recognize the Holodomor genocide as just that: genocide . . . I would like to add my voice in support of the Ukrainian community to recognize the Holodomor with a unique and appropriate place within the CMHR" – ~Feb 13, 2011: The Latvian, Lithuanian, Estonian, Hungarian, and Slovakian communities of Canada: In the Globe and Mail, called for “an embargo on any further or incremental funding” until there’s an independent review of the museum’s contents and a new board created. “We are dismayed that the hard lessons learned by our communities … are callously ignored at present,” said CECC chair Markus Hess. – ~Feb. 13, 2011: Polish Canadian Congress, in the Globe and Mail: The CMHR in its current form is “an inequitable display of what has happened in the world that has gone against human rights.” Having “a separate, permanent room that says ‘the Holocaust’ leaves you questioning what the value is of all the other people who died otherwise . . . Without minimizing the Holocaust, we just feel that whole idea of ‘mass atrocities’ has to be rethought and perhaps have a larger display area in which the Holocaust, the Holodomor, the Armenian genocide, those things, [are] part and parcel of that,” said CPC president Teresa Berezowski. – Feb. 17, 2011: Tim Uppal, MP (Conservative, Edmonton-Sherwood Park): "Recently I have heard from many representatives of the Ukrainian-Canadian community with their concerns regarding the Canadian Museum of Human Rights.  Specifically, many are worried that the Holodomor genocide and the Canadian internment of Ukrainians of World War I will not be given proper recognition, and will be included in a general section of ‘Mass Atrocities.’ "I support the following statement made by my colleague, James Bezan, Member of Parliament for Selkirk-Interlake: ‘I believe that the Holodomor genocide should have a unique, autonomous and prominent place in the CMHR, and that the CMHR Board of Directors contain respected members of the Ukrainian community with knowledge of the Holodomor and other human rights violations.’ " – Feb. 24, 2011: Statement of Liberal Members of Parliament on the Canadian Museum for Human Rights: Borys Wrzesnewskyj, MP (Etobicoke Centre) Gerard Kennedy, MP (Parkdale-High Park) Kevin Lamoureux, MP (Winnipeg North) Hon. Navdeep Bains, P.C., MP (Mississauga-Brampton South) Bonnie Crombie, MP (Mississauga-Streetsville) “The Canadian Museum for Human Rights presents an opportunity to illustrate the promise and the importance of human rights, but sadly part of its mission will necessarily also be to educate Canadians about the consequences of denying those rights.  The Holodomor is as graphic and moving an illustration as can be imagined of the denial of the basic Human Right to Food.” “We federal Liberal Party Members of Parliament hold that this publicly funded national Canadian museum should create and operate a permanent gallery dedicated to the Holodomor, and that the Board of Directors of the CMHR should embrace and include respected members of the Ukrainian Canadian community with expertise in the Holodomor. “It was the Jewish-Polish scholar Raphael Lemkin, known as the ‘Father of The Genocide Convention’ who coined the term ‘genocide’ when referring also to the Holodomor in his 1944 book Axis Rule in Occupied Europe. Unfortunately, the full extent of this horrific “genocide by famine” of millions of Ukrainians was suppressed behind the Iron Curtain during the subsequent 58 years by the Kremlin’s communist regime. “By taking a leadership role in establishing a permanent gallery for the Holodomor, Canada would encourage post-communist countries that are now our economic and security partners to begin to more critically address the human rights violations and genocidal crimes perpetrated in the name of communism and to cease the Holodomor denials which continue to this day. “By having the Holodomor in a permanent zone (exhibit) in our national human rights museum, Canada would fulfill its traditional role in leading the world in the promotion of human rights.” – Feb. 24, 2011: Joy Smith, MP (Conservative, Kildonan-St. Paul): "I believe the Holodomor genocide should be given a prominent presentation that is independent of the Mass Atrocity gallery. Providing a unique and prominent exhibit for the Holodomor will rightly expose the violations of human rights and restore the dignity of victims through the acknowledgement of their suffering. Visitors to the museum will learn of the brutal human rights abuses of the Holodomor genocide and this will enlighten them to strive for human rights for all people. "The Holocaust and the Holodomor were both black spots of history of humanity. Having both stories as prominent displays is imperative. Nations must learn so these tragedies will never happen again." "I also believe the Ukrainian community should have a representative voice on the Board of Directors for the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. Canada boasts the third largest Ukrainian population in the world and our Parliament has officially recognized the Holodomor as a genocide. Thus it is appropriate that strong Ukrainian representation be present when planning a national museum about Human Rights."  – Feb. 28, 2011, 2011: The Canada–Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship Group, from chair Mark Warawa, MP, moved the following motion: "That the Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship Group endorse that a prominent exhibit of the Holodomor Genocide be part of the Canadian Museum of (sic) Human Rights; an exhibit which would fully tell the story of this genocide and that a Board of Directors include representations submitted by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress."  – March 1, 2011: Laurie Hawn MP (Conservative, Edmonton Centre), issued this statement (excerpt below): "Our government has made a positive investment in preserving Canada’s history through the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR) in Winnipeg, MB. It is important that this investment results in a museum which has value for all Canadians . . . The main concern that has been expressed to me is that the Holodomor will be grouped into a general section of ‘Mass Atrocities’ and will not be provided its own independent, permanent and distinct zone, similar to the Holocaust and Aboriginal zones . . . I must recommend that the Holodomor genocide receive a unique and permanent place in the CMHR which will adequately reflect its impact on the Canadian Ukrainian community, its relationship with Canada and our understanding of human rights and genocide around the world." – March 3, 2011, an additional 10 sitting Liberal MPs (below in alphabetical order) agree to support this statement spearheaded by MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj: Hon. Wayne Easter, P.C., M.P. (Malpeque) Hon. Hedy Fry, P.C., M.P. (Vancouver Centre) Andrew Kania, M.P. (Brampton West) Hon. Jim Karygiannis, P.C., M.P. (Scarborough-Agincourt) Hon. Keith Martin, P.C., M.P. (Esquimalt-Juan de Fuca) Massimo Pacetti, M.P. (Saint-Léonard-Saint-Michel) Hon. Bob Rae, P.C., M.P. (Toronto Centre) Scott Simms, M.P. (Bonavista-Gander-Grand Falls-Windsor) Alan Tonks, M.P. (York South-Weston) Frank Valeriote, M.P. (Guelph)] – March 9, 2011, an additional 15 sitting Liberal MPs (below in alphabetical order) agree to support this statement spearheaded by MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj: John Cannis, M.P. (Scarborough Centre) Hon. Denis Coderre, P.C., M.P. (Bourassa) Sukh Dhaliwal, M.P. (Newton-North Delta) Marc Garneau, M.P. (Westmount-Ville-Marie) Mark Holland, M.P. (Ajax-Pickering) Hon. Maria Minna, P.C., M.P. (Beaches-East York) Brian Murphy, M.P. (Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe) Hon. Shawn Murphy, P.C., M.P. (Charlottetown) Joyce Murray, M.P. (Vancouver Quadra) Bernard Patry, M.P. (Pierrefonds-Dollard) Todd Russell, M.P. (Labrador) Mario Silva, M.P. (Davenport) Michelle Simson, M.P. (Scarborough Southwest) Hon. Judy Sgro, P.C., M.P. (York West) Lise Zarac, M.P. (LaSalle-Émard) – March 12, 2011, Peter Goldring MP, Conservative, issued this statement (pdf file). Excerpt below: "When the CMHR was first planned, Ukrainian Canadians were led to believe there would be a permanent exhibit about the Holodomor a horrific time which saw some eight million people die. But apparently plans changed and now there will only be two human rights tragedies with their own permanent display. "Certainly we should not be somehow ranking examples of man’s inhumanity to man. The issue is not eight million dead Jews and others in the Holocaust of World War II, as many as eight million during the Holodomor or the 1.5 million dead in the “killing fields” of Pol Pot’s Cambodia or the million killed in the Rwandan genocide. "The Holodomor was a genocide on the size, scale and relative duration of the Holocaust. It does make sense that this atrocity that impacted so many Canadians (1.2 million of whom are of Ukrainian ancestry, my wife included) be on permanent display at the CMHR – particularly due to the lack of knowledge of this genocide, even by politicians." – March 25, 2011, an additional 10 sitting Liberal MPs (below in alphabetical order) agree to support this statement spearheaded by MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj: Scott Andrews, M.P. (Avalon) Hon. Ujjal Dosanjh, P.C., M.P. (Vancouver South) Kirsty Duncan, M.P. (Etobicoke North) Hon. Lawrence MacAulay, P.C., M.P. (Cardigan) Alexandra Mendes, M.P. (Brossard-La Prairie) Glen Pearson, M.P. (London North Centre) Marcel Proulx, M.P. (Hull-Aylmer) Yasmin Ratansi, M.P. (Don Valley East) Pablo Rodriguez, M.P. (Honoré-Mercier) Paul Szabo, M.P. (Mississauga South)

For immediate release (Ottawa) February 21, 2011 Commenting on Heritage Day, UCCLA's chairman, RW Zakaluzny, said: "Today is an appropriate day for recalling the many millions of people who came to Canada fleeing oppression in their homelands, who then made this country their own, and whose descendants have contributed so much to the creation of an inclusive, welcoming and democratic society here. "Whether they were east Europeans fleeing Communist tyranny, or Vietnamese, Chinese, Cambodians, Tibetans and others escaping similarly oppressive regimes in East Asia, Canada has been enriched by those who came here seeking, and finding, freedom. We hope that the new national museums, namely the Canadian Museum of Immigration (Pier 21) in Halifax, and the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR) (Winnipeg) will pay particular tribute to these heroic people, victims of Communism, who never gave up the hope that someday their homelands would be free, continue to struggle to secure that end, but who, in the meantime, have given so much of themselves to building up a prosperous Canada. "Their suffering, their endurance, their dreams and their triumphs must be the central stories told in our national museums."

UCCLA, January 31, 2011 In the Jan. 31, 2011 edition of The Hill Times, an ad ran timed to coincide with similarly designed postcards in a second targeted UCCLA campaign to convince the Department of Canadian Heritage, its minister, the Hon. James Moore, the Canadian Museum for Human Rights and the government that its proposed allocation of space in the new museum is unequal and unCanadian. The image in the ad, duplicated on the postcard, is from the cover of the 1947 Ukrainian-language edition of George Orwell's Animal Farm. Most copies were confiscated by the American Occupation authorities in Germany and turned over to the Soviets, along with hundreds of thousands of "Soviet Citizens" forcibly repatriated under the terms of the now-notorious Yalta Agreement. Many were survivors and witnesses to the genocidal Great Famine of 1932-1933 in Soviet Ukraine, a tragedy now known as the Holodomor. Text on front of postcard: KOLHOSP TVARYN ('Animal Farm' in Ukrainian) "All animal are equal but some animals are more equal than others" Text on back of postcard: The Canadian Museum for Human Rights is a taxpyer-funded national museum. Its 12 galleries should all be inclusive, comparative and thematic in their treatment of the many crimes against humanity that have befouled human history — before, during and since the Second World War. Instead, two communities are being given privileged, permanent and prominent exhibit spaces, elevating the horrors suffered by a few above all the others. That's unfair. That's unacceptable. Partiality shouldn't be funded from the public purse. When will those in charge understand that a federally funded NATIONAL museum in Winnipeg, to be paid for by TAXPAYERS in PERPETUITY, must be equal to all Canadians, and cannot provide privileged space to one or two groups in Canada at the expense of all others? 📷 Please write to Minister James Moore (pictured) at: Moore.J@parl.gc.ca, or fill out an e-form at http://www2.pch.gc.ca/pc-ch/minstr/moore/cntct/index-eng.cfm

UCCLA Media Release (Ottawa - 17 January 2011) Recent comments by officials from the Canadian Museum for Human Rights have made it clear that the proposed contents of this taxpayer-funded national museum will neither be fair nor equitable. To clarify matters, and speaking to points made by CMHR representatives, Roman Zakaluzny, UCCLA's chair, said: "The museum's CEO, Stuart Murray, has now admitted that the suffering of Jews during the Shoah and of indigenous peoples in Canada will have permanent and prominent gallery spaces (zones) assigned to them, a point underscored in Ottawa recently by Patrick O'Reilly, the Museum's Chief Operating Officer. All other genocides and crimes against humanity- 'a hundred' or so according to museum researchers - will be lumped into a 'Mass Atrocities' zone. In our view this is unjust, ahistorical, and certainly unacceptable given that this is a taxpayer-funded national museum. "In addition, museum officials are also largely ignoring what their own surveys have told them the public expected to see in this museum. "Every one of the twelve zones (galleries) in this museum should be thematic, comparative and inclusive. For example, there should be a gallery dealing with Canadian internment operations and the War Measures Act, which had a negative impact on Ukrainians and other Europeans during the First World War, and on Japanese, German and Italian Canadians during the Second World War, and on French Canadians in 1970. Similarly, a Genocide Gallery would include the Shoah alongside the Armenian Genocide, the Holodomor, the Rwandan Genocide, the Maoist Terror and others. That's fair and equitable. What logical or moral argument can there be for calling what happened to the Armenians or the Chinese or the Cambodians or the Ukrainians as a 'mass atrocity' while insisting that only the Holocaust was an act of genocide or somehow worthy of a privileged space? "No Ukrainian Canadian organization has ever said that the aboriginal experience in Canada or that the Shoah in Europe should not be included in this museum. Both must be. That said, those stories must not be given privileged space in a museum that all Canadians are being called upon to pay for, in perpetuity. "Since it is now apparent that those in charge of this project are intent on pursuing their own vision of what should be included, irrespective of legitimate concerns and of their own surveys of the public, and that they are still attempting to confuse the public about their prearrangements and plans, we call upon the Minister of Canadian Heritage, the Honourable James Moore, to order an immediate stop to any further federal financial support for this museum and to initiate a complete overhaul of its board of trustees and management. A national museum should serve some important national interest. As currently envisioned, this museum will only be a continuing source of divisiveness and controversy."