Source: cynthiachung.substack.com
Yet another “deeply embarrassing” scandal for the Canadian government, this time involving a 98-year old Ukrainian Nazi who received a standing ovation in the Canadian Parliament during Ukrainian President Zelensky’s address this past Friday, on September 22, 2023. Hmmm, coincidence?
According to the PR damage control, this is all the fault of House of Commons Speaker Anthony Rota who had extended an invitation to Yaroslav Hunka to witness Ukrainian President Zelensky’s address to the Canadian Parliament. Thus, we are told that the Trudeau government and Zelensky are simply innocent bystanders of this unfortunate blunder by one man’s oversight.
Even more bizarrely, was Rota’s actual speech during Zelensky’s appearance in Parliament, which went like this:
“We have here in the chamber today, Ukrainian Canadian world veteran from the Second World War, who fought for the Ukrainian Independence against the Russians … (becomes wide-eyed and pauses) and continues to support the troops today even at his age of 98 (applause and standing ovation).”
You can watch the video of Rota’s short bungle of a speech here. Rota has since resigned from his position as House of Commons Speaker, accepting full responsibility for the “deeply embarrassing” incident.
In Trudeau’s “apology” he stated:
“It is going to be really important that all of us push back against Russian propaganda, Russian disinformation, and continue our steadfast and unequivocal support for Ukraine as we did last week announcing further measures to stand with Ukraine in Russia’s illegal war against it.”
Apparently Trudeau’s apology is that this is all Russia’s fault?!?
However, if we are to believe this was all simply a blunder by Rota, why was Mr. Hunka, who served in the 14th Waffen-SS Grenadier Division, a voluntary unit made up of mostly ethnic Ukrainians under Nazi command, introduced by the House of Commons Speaker as a WWII veteran who fought against the Russians? A point that even Mr. Rota seemed perplexed about after he read those lines out loud…clearly he was not the one who wrote his speech.
Yes, if you were Ukrainian and fighting the Russians during WWII that pretty much meant you were directly aligned with the Nazis. To be clear, this Waffen-SS Grenadier Division that Mr. Hunka participated in did not only kill Russians, they killed Polish and Jewish civilians as well.
However, this is not the only blunder that the Canadian government has made recently and has blamed “ze Russians” for.
On February 27, 2022, Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland held a scarf bearing the slogan “Slava Ukraini,” meaning “Glory to Ukraine,” with the “Blood and Soil” colors of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) (who collaborated with the Nazis during WWII and massacred Jews and Poles).
She then proceeded to post this picture onto her Twitter account (replacing it hours later with a picture of her without the “Blood and Soil” scarf) and accused her detractors of “reeking of Russian disinformation”.
According to Freeland’s press secretary, this was just another case of a “classic KGB disinformation smear… accusing Ukrainians and Ukrainian-Canadians of being far right extremists or fascists or Nazis,” which is a confusing statement on multiple levels.
It is not clear how this was a case of “Russian disinformation,” since the picture is indeed authentic, Freeland did not deny this. And she was indeed holding a “Blood and Soil” emblem, which originated with the Nazis, clear for everyone to see. Lastly, it is confusing as to why the Canadian government seems to be unaware that the KGB no longer exists. Are they also under the impression that the Soviet Union still exists?
Not irrelevant in all of this is the fact that Freeland’s grandfather was the chief editor of a Nazi newspaper during WWII in Galicia and that she is indeed aware of this and apparently unapologetic. Whenever she is questioned about this, she does not deny anything, but simply blames such a focus of inquiry on Russian disinformation with the intent to “destabilize Western democracies.”
Interestingly, it was the Canadian newspaper “The Globe and Mail” who reported this story, titled “Freeland knew her grandfather was editor of Nazi newspaper,” thus, not a Russian publication last time I checked. And upon whom did they base such information? None other than Freeland’s own uncle, John-Paul Himka, who was at the time professor emeritus at the University of Alberta….