25 November 2020
MEDIA RELEASE
Ukrainian communities around the world pause this Saturday to honour victims of the Holodomor – Ukraine’s genocide of 1932-33
On Saturday 28 November, Ukrainian families in Australia and around the world will light a candle of remembrance to mark 87 years since the Holodomor – a forced famine imposed on the people of Ukraine by Josef Stalin in 1932-33.
A remembrance service and laying of wreaths, attended by H.E. Mykola Kulinich, Ambassador of Ukraine in Australia and Stefan Romaniw OAM, Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations Co-Chair and First Vice President of the Ukrainian World Congress, will be held at the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral in North Melbourne on Sunday 29 November at 9.30am.
The Holodomor is a horrifying event in Ukraine’s history made all the more tragic by the fact it remains relatively unknown – a famine whose death toll is placed between 7–10 million people.
“The AFUO calls upon the Australian and international communities to pay their respects and commemorate the Holodomor anniversary by lighting a candle this Saturday”, said Stefan Romaniw. “Our mission is to make the Australian Government and all Australians aware of this act against humanity in Ukraine’s not too distant history, to ensure it is never allowed to be repeated” Mr Romaniw said.
Concealed behind the iron curtain of the USSR for decades, the Holodomor only came to light on an international level following Ukraine’s declaration of independence in 1991. The story is slowly being told in the mainstream through films such as film Mr Jones directed by Agnieszka Holland, which played at the 2019 Melbourne International Film Festival and is now available on Netflix.
In 2018, a photography exhibition of Australian-Ukrainian Holodomor survivors was shown in Melbourne and other Australian cities, then toured to the Holodomor Genocide Museum in Kyiv, Ukraine.
Ukrainian communities across the globe vow not to forget the Holodomor and continue to honour its victims each year on the fourth Saturday in November.
Further media enquiries and information:
Stefan Romaniw 0419 531 255
Katherine Danylak 0418 152 675
