May 7, 2015
His Excellency Ban Ki-moon
Secretary-General of the United Nations
UN Headquarters
First Avenue at 46th Street
New York, NY 10017, U.S.A.
[email protected]
Dear Mr. Secretary-General:
The Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organizations (AFUO) strongly urges you to reconsider your decision to participate in Victory Day celebrations on 9 May 2015 in the Russian Federation.
The AFUO fully supports the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) which in correspondence with you called on you not to participate in the celebrations.
Your refusal to participate will send a strong message to President Putin and the Russian Federation that we, the international community uphold a universal position on values, sovereignty and are appalled by Russia’ aggression against Ukraine.
Allow me to reiterate the body of the text sent to you by the UWC
On 8 May 2015 the international community will mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II – a global conflagration that raged uncontrollably for five devastating years engulfing the entire world in a fight for freedom, democracy, fundamental liberties and human rights.
In paying tribute to the victims and the ideals for which they made the ultimate sacrifice, the international community must not lose sight of the very real threat of a new global conflict stemming from the aggression by the Russian Federation in Ukraine, overwhelmingly condemned as a violation of international law and agreements.
Our reflection on World War II cannot disregard the fact that its roots are to be found in the malicious will of two dictators – Adolph Hitler and Joseph Stalin – who had grand visions of controlling the world with no regard for the aspirations of any other state or people, ruthlessly redrawing borders and reshaping human fates.
Today, the same genus of aggression that instigated World War II aspires to change borders and establish zones of domination and hegemony. We are witness to the flagrant intrusion of the Russian Federation in the internal affairs of an independent Ukraine, the violation of Ukraine’s borders, the illegal occupation of Crimea, and open military aggression in Eastern Ukraine.
The human cost of Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine to thwart its sovereign choice to pursue a democratic, European path, is staggering. According to a recent report on the human rights situation in Ukraine by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, at least 6,000 men, women and children have been killed and over 14,000 have been wounded in Eastern Ukraine in the period since mid-April 2014. Moreover, on 13 February 2015, the Ukrainian Ministry of Social Policy reported that the number of registered Internally Displaced Persons had exceeded one million people.
We, therefore, call upon you to reconsider your participation in commemorations marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II on the territory of the Russian Federation, an aggressor state.
Stefan Romaniw OAM
Chairman
Cc Ukrainian World Congress
