Yaroslav Hunka

Extended-protected article
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Yaroslav Hunka
SS Galizien during World War II. The Forward identified the man in the front centre as Hunka,[1] although per Hunka himself he is the man standing in the middle.[2]
Native name
Ярослав Гунька
Bornc. 1925 (age 97–98)
Urmań, Poland
(now Urman, Ternopil Oblast, Ukraine)
Allegiance Germany
Service/branch Waffen-SS
Years of service1943–1945
Unit SS Division Galicia
Known forReceiving a standing ovation from the House of Commons of Canada in 2023 and serving in the Waffen-SS
WarWorld War II

Yaroslav Hunka (Ukrainian: Ярослав Гунька, Polish: Jarosław Hunka; born c. 1925) is a Ukrainian-Canadian World War II veteran of the Waffen SS division Galizien, a military formation of Nazi Germany. Born in Urman, then part of the Second Polish Republic, Hunka volunteered for Waffen SS Galizien in 1943. He immigrated to Canada as a displaced person after the conclusion of the war, and is currently retired and lives in North Bay, Ontario.

In 2023, Hunka made international headlines after he was invited to the House of Commons of Canada by speaker Anthony Rota to be recognized and received two standing ovations from all house members, including Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau and visiting Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Later, Hunka's identity as a former Waffen-SS member was reported on by the media, causing Rota to resign five days later, and Canadian government officials apologized to the worldwide Jewish community.

Biography

Yaroslav Hunka was born in Urman,[3] Second Polish Republic (now Ukraine) c. 1925.[4] In 1943, Hunka volunteered to join the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician) at 18 years old. During his time in the Waffen SS Galizien, he was photographed training in Munich and Neuhammer (present day Świętoszów).[1] In 1944, Hunka was deployed into combat against Red Army forces on the Eastern Front of World War II.[5] Dominique Arel, the chair of Ukrainian studies at the University of Ottawa, told CBC News that thousands of Ukrainian volunteers had been drawn to the division, and that many aspired doing so could help attain Ukrainian independence from the Soviets. According to him, it was "difficult to determine" whether specific groups of the division took part in atrocities, but he said that by the time Hunka's unit reached the front, German operations relating to the Holocaust would have come to an end in that area. He said, however, that the Waffen SS Galizien had been found to be implicated in the killing of Polish civilians.[5]

Following the conclusion of World War II in Europe, Hunka settled in the United Kingdom and joined the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain.[6] In 1951, he married Margaret Ann Edgerton (1931–2018), and the couple emigrated to Canada three years later, settling in Toronto, where they raised their two sons, Martin and Peter, and became active in the Ukrainian-Canadian community.[7][6] After graduating from a technical college, Hunka worked in the aircraft industry, eventually becoming an inspector for De Havilland.[6] In retirement, Hunka was heavily involved in the Ukrainian community and his sons, Martin and Peter, established the Yaroslav and Margaret Hunka Ukrainian Research Endowment Fund at the University of Alberta to advance academic research in the underground Ukrainian Catholic Church.[6] After the 2023 controversy surrounding Hunka, the interim provost of the University of Alberta closed the endowment and returned the approximately CA$30,000 to Hunka's sons, saying that the university "recognizes and regrets the unintended harm caused."[8]

On August 20, 2004, Hunka was named an Honorary Citizen of the City of Berezhany by the Berezhany city council, in Ukraine.[9]

In Canada, Hunka remained active in Waffen SS Galizien veterans circles and contributed to a blog on the Internet in 2010 and 2011. In 2011, he compared the Ukrainian diaspora to the Israelites.[1] As of 2022, Hunka lived in North Bay, Ontario, and travelled to Greater Sudbury to protest against the Russian invasion of Ukraine that year.[4] Describing the situation in Ukraine, Hunka told CTV News that the "Destruction is just unbelievable but it will take years and years to rebuild it, ... But Ukrainian [sic] will win and God Bless Ukraine and I pray for it."[4]

House of Commons of Canada visit

In September 2023, Anthony Rota, the speaker of the House of Commons, invited Hunka to visit the Parliament of Canada, where Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivered remarks.[10][11] On September 22, 2023, Rota recognized Hunka's presence in the chamber, characterizing him as "a Ukrainian-Canadian veteran from the Second World War who fought for Ukrainian independence against the Russians and continues to support the troops today, even at his age of 98."[12] Rota praised Hunka, asserting that "He is a Ukrainian hero, a Canadian hero, and we thank him for all his service."[10][13] After Rota's praise, the chamber gave a standing ovation to Hunka, which Zelenskyy and his wife also joined.[1]

Reactions to the celebration of Hunka were negative and generated international headlines. The Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies condemned Waffen SS Galizien as "responsible for the mass murder of innocent civilians with a level of brutality and malice that is unimaginable,"[10] referencing events such as the 1944 Huta Pieniacka massacre of Polish civilians.[1] In a statement released on September 24, Rota accepted responsibility for inviting Hunka to the ceremony,[14] and stated that "I particularly want to extend my deepest apologies to Jewish communities in Canada and around the world. I accept full responsibility for my action."[11][15] Ann-Clara Vaillancourt, a spokeswoman for Trudeau, called Rota's apology "the right thing to do" and emphasized Rota's responsibility for inviting Hunka to the ceremony.[16] On September 26, Rota resigned over the controversy.[17][18] President Zelenskyy did not comment on the incident.[19][20]

Following the incident, an image of a fake Ukrainian postal stamp featuring Hunka was shared on Twitter by multiple users, including the Russian embassy in the U.K.[21][22] Other Russian embassies have also criticized the event.[23]

Possible Polish extradition request

On September 26, Polish education minister Przemysław Czarnek stated that his government may seek to extradite Hunka as a war criminal.[24][25] In a post made on the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter), Czarnek said:[26][27]

In view of the scandalous events in the Canadian Parliament, which involved honoring a member of the criminal Nazi SS Galizien formation in the presence of President Zelensky, I have taken steps towards the possible extradition of this man to Poland. #NOForFalsifyingHistory!

References

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Golinkin, Lev (24 September 2023). "Zelenskyy joins Canadian Parliament's ovation to 98-year-old veteran who fought with Nazis". The Forward. Archived from the original on 24 September 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  2. ^ The description of the photo provided by Hunka is as follows: Гайделяґер. Хлопці з мого села Урмань, Бережанського району. Я стою посередині. Клячать, зліва: Кіналь Михайло, поляк, що зжився з українськими хлопцями; після боїв під Бродами вступив до УПА й загинув у 1946 р. біля Бережан; Кулик Іван, загинув під Бродами; Каліщук Михайло, після Бродів загинув в УПА. Стоять, зліва: Фурдиґа Василь, після Бродів повернувся додому, згодом поїхав до Москви, де жив його брат, зголосився до Червоної армії, дослужився ранґи лейтенанта, воював проти японців; Ткачук Дмитро, служив у чоті польової жандармерії у Дивізії. Інші два з присілка й я їх добре не знав.
  3. ^ Hunka, Yaroslav (21 March 2011). "Моє покоління" [My Generation]. Вісті Комбатанта [Combatant's News] (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 25 September 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c Everson, Alana (7 May 2022). "Sudbury hosts rally for Ukraine". CTV News. Archived from the original on 6 July 2022. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b Paas-Lang, Christian (24 September 2023). "House Speaker apologizes for honouring Ukrainian who fought in Nazi unit in WW II". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 25 September 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "New Endowments" (PDF). CIUS Newsletter. University of Alberta. 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
  7. ^ Gillies, Rob (22 September 2023). "Zelenskyy speaks before Canadian Parliament in his campaign to shore up support for Ukraine". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 24 September 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  8. ^ Harpaz, Beth (28 September 2023). "Canadian university to return donation from family of man who served in Nazi unit". The Forward. Archived from the original on 28 September 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  9. ^ "Почесні громадяни м.Бережани" (PDF). berezhanymrada.gov.ua. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 May 2021. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b c Ritchie, Sarah (25 September 2023) [Originally published September 24, 2023]. "House Speaker Anthony Rota apologizes after inviting man who fought for Nazis to Parliament". CTV News. Archived from the original on 24 September 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
  11. ^ Jump up to: a b Gillies, Rob (24 September 2023). "Leader of Canada's House of Commons apologizes for honoring man who fought for Nazis". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 25 September 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  12. ^ Duggan, Kyle (24 September 2023). "Nazi-linked veteran received ovation during Zelenskyy's Canada visit". Politico. Archived from the original on 24 September 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  13. ^ Brugen, Isabel van (25 September 2023). "Who is Yaroslav Hunka? Ukrainian With Nazi past honored in Canada". Newsweek. Archived from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  14. ^ Schroeder, Pete (24 September 2023). "Canada House speaker apologizes for recognition of veteran who fought for Nazis". Reuters. Archived from the original on 25 September 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  15. ^ "'Deepest apologies': Canada official backtracks after Ukraine Nazi honoured". Al Jazeera. 25 September 2023. Archived from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  16. ^ Kaur, Anumita (24 September 2023). "Canadian House speaker apologizes after honoring veteran of Nazi unit". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 25 September 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  17. ^ "Anthony Rota resigns as House Speaker over tribute to veteran of Nazi unit - National | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Archived from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  18. ^ Tasker, John Paul (26 September 2023). "Anthony Rota resigns as Speaker after inviting former Ukrainian soldier with Nazi ties to Parliament". CBC. Archived from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  19. ^ "Fury after Zelensky and Trudeau gave WW2 Nazi unit veteran a standing ovation". Daily Express. 25 September 2023. Archived from the original on 28 September 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  20. ^ "Canada's House Speaker resigns over celebration of 98-year-old who fought in Nazi unit". The Forward. 26 September 2023. Archived from the original on 28 September 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  21. ^ Furtado, Annet Preethi (28 September 2023). "No, Ukraine hasn't issued postal stamps featuring Yaroslav Hunka". Logically. Archived from the original on 30 September 2023. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
  22. ^ Malashenko, Uliana (27 September 2023). "Fact Check: Ukraine Did NOT Issue Stamp With Yaroslav Hunka On It -- Viral Image Showed Barcode From Different Product". Lead Stories. Archived from the original on 30 September 2023. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
  23. ^ Karadeglija, Anja. "Parliament's Nazi scandal a 'top headline story' for Russian propaganda news". Archived from the original on 30 September 2023. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
  24. ^ Zimonjic, Peter (26 September 2023). "Poland's education minister says he's 'taken steps' to extradite Yaroslav Hunka". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  25. ^ Francis, Ellen (27 September 2023). "Polish official wants Canada to extradite 98-year-old Nazi veteran". Washington Post. Archived from the original on 27 September 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  26. ^ Tilles, Daniel (26 September 2023). "Poland may seek extradition of Ukrainian Nazi WW2 veteran Hunka from Canada". Notes From Poland. Archived from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  27. ^ Mayer, Chloe (26 September 2023). "Yaroslav Hunka extradition demanded by Poland over alleged Nazi past". Newsweek. Archived from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.

Sources

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Yaroslav_Hunka&oldid=1177933140"