For the first time in more than 14 years, a President of Ukraine has made an official visit to Canada, the first Western country to recognize Ukraine’s independence in 1991 (some pictures and video here). Addressing the House of Commons, Yushchenko said:

“The development pace that requires centuries for many countries is covered by several years by us,” he told the Commons. “However the recent years have shown that the most complicated problems and challenges, including the social problems, we resolve them in a very democratic and civilized way. We are speaking frankly about our problems.”

He also talked about the past of Ukraine’s sovereignty, in the last 90 years being declared independent six times:

“I don’t want this range of historic tragedies to be repeated in today’s history of Ukraine. The only …solution to make Ukraine eternal is Ukraine’s ascension to the system of collective security.

Yushchenko also thanked Harper for Canada’s support for Ukraine in NATO:

“When we’re speaking about Ukraine’s NATO membership, we’re speaking about genuine Ukraine sovereignty. This is the reason why such a strong and insistent policy is being carried out by the Ukrainian government”

Yushchenko also raised the issue of the Holodomor for support of MP James Bezan‘s private member bill C-469 which has already the Liberal’s and NDP’s support.

“I anticipate that the bill will pass,” said Harper. “It’s important that the world not forget.”

The vote for the bill is scheduled to happen tomorrow.

Also, Senator Raynell Andreychuk and Liberal MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj will be given the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise while Yushchenko will lay a wreath at the National War Memorial and then participate in a tree-planting ceremony.

More newspaper sources: CBC, CTV Winnipeg, Canwest News Service, the Globe and Mail, Ottawa Citizen, Canadian Press, Toronto Star. The Financial Post also interviewed Pres. Yushchenko.

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UPDATE: Click Here for President Yushchenko meeting with Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

With the wrapping up of the Holodomor Remembrance Flame in Canada over the weekend, President of Ukraine Viktor Yushchenko will visit various cities across Canada this week and meet with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to show his support for Manitoba Tory MP James Bezan’s private member’s bill C-469 to officially recognize the Ukrainian famine as genocide.

It’s a shift from last fall, when during the 75th anniversary commemoration of the famine
on Parliament Hill Stephen Harper made no mention of genocide.

Here is the schedule of this historic three-day visit:

• May 26 at 11AM in Ottawa – address Senators and Members of the House of Commons (available on CPAC online and on television). May repeat at 8PM.
• May 26 at 5PM on Parliament Hill – last stop for Holodomor Remembrance Flame and meet survivor Stefan Horlatsch.
• May 27 in the morning in Alberta – briefly meet with Premier Ed Stolmach at the Ukrainian village
• May 27 at 11:30AM in Winnipeg – public welcome by Manitoba Premier Gary Doer in front of Taras Shevchenko monument on NW-corner of Manitoba Legislative Building grounds.
• May 27 at 2PM at Univ. of Winnipeg – attending Special Convocation, will be shown online.
• May 28 at 12PM in Toronto – address Economic Club of Toronto (full schedule) at Westin Harbour Castle.
• May 28 at 9:30PM in Toronto – address Ukrainian Canadian Congress dinner at Old Mill Inn.

Wrapping up its tour across the USA, the Holodomor Remembrance Flame will make a brief return to Canada this weekend starting in Hamilton last night and touring southern Ontario and Montreal before making its last stop in Ottawa:

Lidia Prokomenko remembers eating acorns and chewing grass to survive, and watching her neighbours die, during the Ukrainian famine of 1932-33.

Now 83 and living in St. Catharines, Prokomenko was just eight years old when she witnessed dead bodies strewn on the streets of her childhood hometown of Harkiw.

“It was worse than anything,” said Prokomenko.

“It was worse than the (Second World) war.”
…
In 2003, the Senate of Canada voted to recognize the famine as a genocide and encourage historians, educators and parliamentarians to include the true facts of the famine in future educational material.

The House of Commons has yet to follow suit.
…
For years, many Ukrainians were too afraid to speak about the forced starvation out of fear for relatives who remained under the power of the Soviet Union, said Alexandra Sawchuk, who is a member of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, St. Catharines branch. There are 35 Holodomor survivors in Niagara.

Here is the schedule of the rest of the stops this weekend: