Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House today to ask Canadians to mark November 24 as a day of remembrance for the more than seven million Ukrainians who were victims of the famine and genocide of 1932-33.
This famine was not a result of natural causes but was perpetrated by the communist leader of the time, Josef Stalin. In a move to force both farmers and peasants into collective farming Stalin increased the grain procurement quota for Ukraine by 44%, knowing that this would cause a grain shortage which would result in the inability of both farmers and peasants to feed themselves. Soviet law stated that no grain would be provided to Ukraine until the quota was met. This action resulted in over seven million Ukrainians dying.
On November 26, 1998, Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma issued a presidential decree designating every fourth Saturday of November as the National Day of Remembrance of the victims of this horrific act. This weekend on November 24 Canadians will join with millions of Ukrainians throughout the world to mark this terrible event.
It is my sincere hope as a Canadian of Ukrainian descent that the world will learn from this tragic episode in history and ensure that it will never happen again in the future.