Ukrainian nationalists commemorate Nazi collaborator
Roman Shukhevich and his forces were implicated in the mass murder of Jews and Poles during World War II
Ukrainian nationalists gathered this week to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the death of Roman Shukhevich, a Nazi collaborator and leader of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), known for its role in ethnic cleansing during World War II. The events included a torchlit march, a flower-laying ceremony, and the unveiling of a virtual museum dedicated to him.
One of the events included a ceremony on Wednesday near the site of the Museum of Shukhevich in Bilohorshcha outside of Lviv, which was allegedly destroyed by a Russian drone strike last year. It was attended by the acting head of the Lviv Regional Council, regional deputies, veterans, and nationalist organizations, according to local officials.
The Lviv Regional Council also said priests conducted a memorial service commemorating Roman Shukhevich and his followers. A video of the ceremony shared by Suspilne shows a crowd singing the Ukrainian national anthem, with people laying yellow and blue bouquets after the Ukrainian flag.
A day earlier, Ukrainian nationalists also held a torchlit march in Lviv to honor Shukhevich, with the event attracting over 1,000 participants, according to the newspaper Den. The marchers carried red and black UPA flags and banners of nationalist organizations, including those of the far-right groups Right Sector and Svoboda. The event ended with a prayer at a monument to Stepan Bandera, another nationalist leader linked to Nazi collaboration.
Adding to the commemoration, the Lviv Historical Museum launched a virtual museum of Shukhevich based on the original museum. Russia has not confirmed the strike that was said to have destroyed it in 2024, with officials in Moscow stating that Russian forces only attack sites linked to the military.
Shukhevich served in the Nachtigall Battalion, a unit formed by Ukrainian nationalists under German command in 1941. The battalion took part in the massacre of Jews in Lviv following the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union.
Later, he became a commander in the Schutzmannschaft Battalion 201, which conducted anti-partisan operations, targeting Jews and Belarusian civilians. In 1943, he assumed the leadership of the UPA, which was responsible for the Volyn massacres, in which tens of thousands of Polish civilians were slaughtered.
Shukhevych was killed in 1950 during a Soviet raid, allegedly committing suicide after his hideout was surrounded by security forces.
Russia has repeatedly sounded the alarm over the resurgence of Nazi ideology in Ukraine, and has listed ‘denazification’ as one of the key goals of its military operation against Kiev.
Candian ‘Victims of Communism’ monument features Nazis – media
Over half of the names reportedly inscribed on the memorial, which has yet to be installed, could have to be removed
Canadian authorities could have to remove more than half of the names inscribed on a memorial to the victims of communism planned for the country's capital, Ottawa, due to concerns that over half have Nazi links, local media reported on Monday.
According to a document obtained by the Ottawa Citizen, the Department of Canadian Heritage found that out of the 553 people and organizations to be originally listed, 50 to 60 were “were likely directly linked to the Nazis.”
A 2023 report for Canadian Heritage insisted that over 330 names be excluded from the list “to be on the safe side,” as there was not enough information to confirm or deny Nazi links. It was instead proposed to remove other names because of there being no direct link to Canada, the outlet said.
The monument was originally scheduled to be unveiled in November 2023, but the ceremony was delayed due to concerns that WWII Nazi collaborators were listed on the monument. The checks were made after a scandal in which a known Ukrainian Waffen SS veteran, Yaroslav Hunka, received a standing ovation in the Canadian parliament.
The latter controversy ignited a firestorm globally, particularly from the Jewish community, which pointed out that Hunka’s 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS, also known as the 1st Galician Division, which consisted mostly of Western Ukrainians, was implicated in war crimes.
In this light, the Canadian government is now “doing its due diligence to ensure all aspects of the Memorial remain compatible with Canadian values on democracy and human rights.” The monument is now scheduled to open this year, although the exact date has yet to be determined.
The planned monument first drew controversy in 2021 when the fundraising campaign attracted numerous donations meant to honor such notorious figures as Ante Pavelic, a Croatian fascist leader, and Roman Shukhevich, a Ukrainian nationalist and Nazi collaborator, who was among the perpetrators of the massacre of tens of thousands of Poles.
And how many tens of billions of dollars has Canada sent to support this regime that celebrates Nazis like Shukhevich and Bandera?
