Canada has unveiled first memorial in Atlantic region to victims of Holodomor. VIDEO+PHOTOS
A memorial entitled ‘Bitter Childhood Memories’, dedicated to the victims of the 1932–1933 Holodomor, has been unveiled in the Canadian city of Charlottetown on Prince Edward Island. This is the first monument commemorating this tragedy in Canada’s Atlantic region.
This was reported by Censor.NET, citing a Facebook post by Andrii Plakhotniuk, Ukraine’s Ambassador to Canada.
The memorial has brought together the Ukrainian community and local authorities
The opening ceremony was attended by the Lieutenant-Governor of Prince Edward Island, Wassim Salamoun; the Speaker of the Provincial Legislative Assembly, Brad Travers; the Mayor of Charlottetown, Philip Brown; representatives of the Ukrainian community; and friends of Ukraine.
The project was initiated by Elina Lialuk and the local branch of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress on Prince Edward Island. Representatives of the authorities, civil society organisations, charitable foundations, artists and volunteers from Canada and Ukraine contributed to the creation of the memorial.
Ukrainian Ambassador Andrii Plakhotniuk emphasised that the memorial should not only preserve the memory of those who perished, but also serve as a reminder of the consequences of a policy aimed at the destruction of the Ukrainian people.
"This memorial is more than just a monument. It is a place of remembrance, a tribute to the innocent people who perished as a result of the artificially created famine, and a reminder of what the regime’s quest to destroy a nation and its identity leads to," the diplomat stated.
The memory of the Holodomor was linked to the current war
Andriy Plakhotnyuk noted that the threat to Ukrainian national identity remains a pressing issue. According to him, Russia continues to attack Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure, forcibly relocate children, and is attempting to destroy the Ukrainian language, culture and historical memory.
The Ambassador emphasised that understanding the crimes of the Stalinist regime helps us realise what Ukraine is fighting for today as it defends its independence and the right to its own identity.
"The Holodomor was intended to silence the Ukrainian people. Today, in the heart of Charlottetown, their memory has found a permanent home — thousands of kilometres from Ukraine, but amongst people who refuse to forget," Plakhotniuk emphasised.
The diplomat thanked the authorities of Prince Edward Island, the Ukrainian community and all those involved in the project for preserving the historical truth and supporting Ukraine.
Canada has a long history of honouring the victims of the Holodomor. In 2008, the country’s parliament recognised the Holodomor of 1932–1933 as genocide against the Ukrainian people and established a Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the Ukrainian Famine and Genocide. It is observed on the fourth Saturday in November.
For decades, the Ukrainian community in Canada has been working to raise awareness of the crimes of the Stalinist regime, preserve eyewitness accounts and pass on knowledge of the tragedy to future generations.
