Politics
Mint Explainer: How did Canada’s Parliament come to honour a Nazi SS veteran?
Summary
- Yaroslav Hunka, a 98-year-old who was praised in the House of Commons for “fighting for Ukraine independence against the Russians” during World War II, actually served in the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the Schutzstaffel, according to a prominent Jewish organisation
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau finds himself engulfed in a fresh political crisis after lawmakers gave a standing ovation to a man who had served in a Nazi unit during World World II. Mint unpacks the incident.
What is the background to this?
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky was in Canada last week and spoke in front of the House of Commons, which is Canada’s Parliament. After his speech, Speaker Anthony Rota recognised 98-year-old Yaroslav Hunka, who was a guest in the audience, for “fighting for Ukraine independence against the Russians" during World War II. Rota went on to call Hunka a “Canadian hero" and thanked him for his service. The nonagenarian then received a standing ovation from the lawmakers present as well as from Prime Minister Trudeau and President Zelensky.
What ignited the controversy?
Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Centre, a prominent Jewish organisation, revealed soon after the speech that Hunka had actually served in the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the Schutzstaffel. Also known as the SS, it was a paramilitary organisation established by Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Party. The SS is infamous for the role it played in enforcing the Nazi regime’s policies of racial discrimination against the Jewish people and other minorities. It was also directly implicated in the Holocaust, which saw the deaths of millions of persecuted groups at the hands of the Nazi regime. Hunka’s specific unit also stands accused of atrocities.
What has the reaction been?
“FSWC (Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Centre) is appalled that Canada’s Parliament gave a standing ovation to a Ukrainian veteran who served in a Nazi military unit during the Second World War implicated in the mass murder of Jews and others," the group said in a statement. It also called for an apology.
“This is an appalling error in judgement on the part of Justin Trudeau, whose personal protocol office is responsible for arranging and vetting all guests and programming for state visits of this kind," said opposition leader Pierre Poilievre. Speaker Rota claimed sole responsibility for the incident and said that no one else had known that he was planning to recognise Hunka.
How has Trudeau reacted?
As the controversy erupted, the Canadian Prime Minister’s office issued a statement stating that the apology was “the right thing to do". “No advance notice was provided to the Prime Minister’s Office, nor the Ukrainian delegation, about the invitation or the recognition," the statement added. However, Trudeau himself has not yet spoken on the matter.
