Ukrainian Nazi Veteran & family in hiding amid Parl. scandal: Reports

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
30 Sep 2023 09:29

A source told CBC she had been unaware that Yaroslav Hunka had been an 'SS man'.

Yaroslav Hunka sits in the House of Commons in Ottawa ahead of an address by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sept. 22. (Patrick Doyle/AP)

Yaroslav Hunka, a Ukrainian veteran with ties to Nazi groups, and his family are currently in seclusion due to an ongoing scandal in the Canadian parliament, CBC television channel reported, citing family friend Barb Bonenfant.

"Afraid to show their faces," Bonenfant said, adding she had been unaware that Hunka had been an SS man.

On September 22nd, Yaroslav Hunka, a 98-year-old ex-volunteer affiliated with the 14th Waffen SS Grenadier Division, a Nazi military unit that was deemed a criminal organization during the 1946 Nuremberg trials, received an invitation to the Canadian parliament from Speaker Anthony Rota.

During this visit, Hunka was praised as a "hero" for his WWII combat against the Russians. The Ukrainian President was present at the time with the aim of seeking support in the Ukraine conflict.

However, following the revelation of Hunka's involvement with the infamous SS, Speaker Rota resigned due to the ensuing public backlash. Canadian journalists and activists from various backgrounds pointed out that this individual's history had been glossed over by veterans' organizations in Western countries.

The leader of Canada's parliamentary opposition, Pierre Poilievre, later described Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as a "clown" following the invitation of a former Nazi Ukrainian soldier to Canada's parliament.

"The prime minister is seen as a clown on the world stage. But whether you blame him or the Liberal Speaker [Anthony Rota, announced resignation on Tuesday] for recognizing a Nazi on the floor of the House of Commons, we all agree that it took him five days - five days - [to apologize] while he hid under a rock and let our reputation be torn to tatters," Poilievre told the Canadian parliament on Thursday.