Yaroslav Hunka

Extracted Attributes

• Full Name

  Yaroslav Ilkovych Hunka

• Citizenship

  Canada; Second Polish Republic

• Date of Birth

  1925-03-19

• Military Rank

  SS-Rottenführer

• Military Unit

  14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician)

• Service Years

  1943-1945

• Place of Birth

  Urman, Second Polish Republic (now Ukraine)

• Age at Recognition

  98 years

Timeline

• Yaroslav Hunka is born in Urman, Second Polish Republic. (Source: Wikidata)

  1925-03-19

• Hunka volunteers to join the SS Division Galicia at the age of 18. (Source: Wikipedia)

  1943-01-01

• Hunka fights against the Red Army on the Eastern Front of World War II. (Source: Wikipedia)

  1944-01-01

• Hunka's service in the Waffen-SS concludes with the end of World War II in Europe. (Source: Wikipedia)

  1945-05-08

• Hunka is named an Honorary Citizen of Berezhany. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2004-01-01

• Hunka receives two standing ovations in the Canadian House of Commons during a visit by Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2023-09-22

• Speaker Anthony Rota resigns from his position following the scandal surrounding Hunka's invitation. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2023-09-26

• The Canadian House of Commons unanimously adopts a motion to condemn Nazism and retract the recognition of Hunka. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2023-09-27

• Hunka is awarded the Badge 'for Merits to Ternopil Region'. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2024-01-01

Yaroslav Hunka scandal

On 22 September 2023, Yaroslav Hunka, a Ukrainian Canadian who fought in the SS Division Galicia of the military wing of the Nazi Party, the Waffen-SS, was invited to the House of Commons of Canada to be recognized by Speaker Anthony Rota, the Member of Parliament for Hunka's district. Hunka received two standing ovations from all house members, including Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, other party leaders, and visiting Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Hunka's membership in the Waffen-SS was reported initially by The Forward, which quoted a tweet by academic Ivan Katchanovski. The story was picked up by the Canadian media, receiving international attention. The incident, seen as a political blunder and a scandal, such that it drew comparisons to the most embarrassing moments in Canada's history, was leveraged by the Russian establishment to further its justifications for waging war in Ukraine, which had been started under a pretext of "denazification", among other stated reasons. Rota resigned as speaker five days later, and the House unanimously adopted a motion to condemn Nazism and withdraw its recognition of Hunka. Prime Minister Trudeau and Canadian government officials apologized to the worldwide Jewish community. The handling of suspected World War II war criminals in Canada became a renewed matter of public interest.

Web Search Results

• Yaroslav Hunka scandal - Wikipedia

  Yaroslav Ilkovych Hunka (Ukrainian: Ярослав Ількович Гунька; Polish: Jarosław Hunka; born March 19, 1925) is a Ukrainian-Canadian World War II veteran of the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician) "14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician)")—abbreviated as SS Galizien—a military formation of Nazi Germany. Hunka was born in Urman, Second Polish Republic (now Ukraine). In 1943, Hunka volunteered to join SS Galizien at 18 years old. According to Hunka, his reason for enlisting was following the call of the Ukrainian Central Committee to fight for the idea of "Unified Ukraine". During his time in the unit, he was photographed training in Munich and Neuhammer (present day Świętoszów). He received the rank of Rottenführer. [...] Download as PDF Printable version In other projects Wikidata item Appearance From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 2023 Canadian political scandal On 22 September 2023, Yaroslav Hunka, a Ukrainian Canadian who fought in the SS Division Galicia "14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician)") of the military wing of the Nazi Party, the Waffen-SS, was invited to the House of Commons of Canada to be recognized by Speaker "Speaker of the House of Commons (Canada)") Anthony Rota, the Member of Parliament "Member of Parliament (Canada)") for Hunka's district. Hunka received two standing ovations from all house members, including Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, other party leaders, and visiting Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. [...] ## Background ### Yaroslav Hunka | Yaroslav Hunka | | Born | (1925-03-19) 19 March 1925 (age 100) Urmań, Poland | | Allegiance | Nazi Germany | | Branch | Waffen-SS | | Service years | 1943–1945 | | Rank | SS-Rottenführer | | Unit | 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician) "14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician)") | | War | World War II + Eastern Front "Eastern Front (World War II)") - Huta Pieniacka massacre | | Awards | Honorary Citizen of Berezhany (2004) Badge "for Merits to Ternopil Region" (2024) |

• Yaroslav Hunka - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

  | Yaroslav Hunka | | Native name | Ярослав Гунька | | Born | (1925-03-19) 19 March 1925 (age 100) Urmań"), Poland (now Urman, Ukraine) | | Allegiance | Germany | | Branch | Waffen-SS | | Years of service | 1943–1945 | | Unit | SS Division Galicia") | | Known for | Receiving a standing ovation from the House of Commons of Canada in 2023 | | War | World War II | Yaroslav Hunka (Ukrainian: Ярослав Гунька; born 19 March 1925) is a Ukrainian-Canadian World War II veteran of the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician) "14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician)"), which was part of the Nazi Germany military. ## Early life [change | change source] Yaroslav Hunka was born in Urman, Second Polish Republic (now Ukraine) in 1925. [...] In 1943, Hunka volunteered to join the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician) "14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Galician)"). During his time in SS Galizien, he was photographed training in Munich and Neuhammer. In 1944, Hunka fought against Red Army forces on the Eastern Front of World War II "Eastern Front (World War II)"). The Nuremberg Trials ruled that the Waffen-SS was a criminal organization responsible for mass atrocities including the “persecution and extermination of the Jews, brutalities and killings in concentration camps, excesses in the administration of occupied territories, the administration of the slave labor program, and the mistreatment and murder of prisoners” and that all of its members were guilty. [...] 3. ↑ Hunka, Yaroslav (March 21, 2011). "Моє покоління" [My Generation]. Вісті Комбатанта [Combatant's News] (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on September 25, 2023. Retrieved September 25, 2023. 4. 1 2 Everson, Alana (May 7, 2022). "Sudbury hosts rally for Ukraine". CTV News"). Archived from the original on July 6, 2022. Retrieved September 24, 2023. 5. ↑ Golinkin 2023. 6. ↑ Paas-Lang, Christian (September 24, 2023). "House Speaker apologizes for honouring Ukrainian who fought in Nazi unit in WW II". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on September 25, 2023. Retrieved September 24, 2023. 7. ↑ "New Endowments" (PDF). CIUS Newsletter. University of Alberta. 2020. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023.

• Canada's SS veteran Yaroslav Hunka originally sheltered by Britain ...

  People's World Peoples World # Canada’s SS veteran Yaroslav Hunka originally sheltered by Britain after WWII Canada’s SS veteran Yaroslav Hunka originally sheltered by Britain after WWII LONDON—Former SS soldier Yaroslav Hunka, whose standing ovation in the Canadian parliament scandalized the world this week, was given refuge in Britain after World War II, the Morning Star can reveal. Despite having served in the Galicia Division of the Waffen-SS, a unit associated with massacres of Jews, Poles, and other civilians during the war, Hunka was allowed to settle in Britain after the fall of Hitler’s dictatorship. [...] Last year, the Manchester Evening News interviewed a 98-year-old Ukrainian named Iwan Kluka, who boasted of having “fought against Stalin’s Red Army.” The newspaper deleted the article online after outraged readers pointed out that Kluka had clearly fought alongside the Nazi invaders from Germany. Morning Star LONDON—Former SS soldier Yaroslav Hunka, whose standing ovation in the Canadian parliament scandalized the world this week, was given refuge in Britain after World War II, the Morning Star can reveal. Despite having served in the Galicia Division of the Waffen-SS, a unit associated with massacres of Jews, Poles, and other civilians during the war, Hunka was allowed to settle in Britain after the fall of Hitler’s dictatorship. [...] He was one of many Ukrainian Waffen-SS veterans allowed to live in Britain after the war. The British government decided to regard them as “stateless,” meaning that they could not be returned to face justice in the countries in which their atrocities had been committed. There were so many anti-Soviet Ukrainian ex-soldiers living in Britain that a separate organization, the Association of Ukrainian Former Combatants in Great Britain (AUFC), was formed in London on July 30, 1949. A recruitment poster printed in Ukrainian for the SS Division that Hunka joined as a young man. It was published on the website of an organization of Ukrainian SS veterans. | via Combatant’s News

• Canada Nazi row puts spotlight on Ukraine's WWII past - BBC

  Skip to content Watch Live Watch Live # Canada Nazi row puts spotlight on Ukraine's WWII past Nadine YousifBBC News, Toronto When Canada's parliament praised a Ukrainian war veteran who fought with Nazi Germany, a renewed spotlight was put on a controversial part of Ukraine's history and its memorialisation in Canada. Yaroslav Hunka, the Ukrainian veteran who was applauded in parliament this week, served with a Nazi unit called the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS - also known as the Galicia Division - that was formed in 1943. His appearance was criticised by Jewish groups and other parliamentarians alike. MP Anthony Rota, who invited him, has since resigned as the Speaker of the House of Commons, saying he deeply regretted the mistake. [...] And Ukrainian elected officials are not tied to any far-right group in the country. "Russia has greatly simplified the narrative," Prof Marples said. Ukrainian groups in Canada say the row over monuments and Mr Hunka's appearance in parliament is the result of this propaganda. As far back as 2017, before the invasion but when Russia-Ukraine tensions were high, the Russian embassy in Canada criticized the existence of Ukrainian monuments in Canada, accusing them of paying tribute to "Nazi collaborators". Taras Podilsky, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian Youth Unity Complex in Edmonton that houses the bust of Shukhevych, said Mr Hunka's swift renunciation by Canadian politicians is the latest effect of Russia's disinformation campaign. [...] He added there is no evidence linking the veteran to war crimes. "Without any due process, this person is a victim of a Russian narrative that has now been successful," Mr Podilsky said. Mr Mostyn of B'nai Brith said he acknowledged the complicated nature of this history, especially to some within the Ukrainian diaspora. But he said any ties to Nazism "is not something that we can allow future generations to celebrate or whitewash". More broadly, Holocaust scholars have called out several eastern European countries in recent years for downplaying their role in the massacre of Jewish people during WWII. Both Jewish groups in Canada and Canadians of Ukrainian descent behind these monuments said they have had conversations about the issue.

• Canada speaker apologizes after Ukrainian Nazi veteran ...

  Add NBC News to Google By Alexander Smith It seemed like a touching and timely tribute by Canadian lawmakers to a 98-year-old war “hero” who fought for Ukraine’s independence during World War II. But it soon emerged that the man was in fact part of a notorious Nazi unit, leading to fury at the standing ovation he was given in the presence of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Yaroslav Hunka wiped away tears on receiving the rousing recognition from the Canadian House of Commons on Friday. He was singled out by Speaker Anthony Rota, who called him a “hero” following a speech by the visiting Ukrainian leader, who in turn raised a fist during the applause. But Rota apologized Sunday after he said he “subsequently became aware of more information” about Hunka’s past. [...] IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. # Standing ovation for a Ukrainian who fought with the Nazis sparks anger and an apology in Canada Lawmakers recognized Yaroslav Hunka, 98, shortly after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed the Canadian Parliament. Add NBC News to Google Standing ovation by Canadian lawmakers for Ukrainian who fought with the Nazis 01:17 Get more newson Add NBC News to Google By Alexander Smith [...] “The fact that a veteran who served in a Nazi military unit was invited to and given a standing ovation in Parliament is shocking,” it said. Hunka’s unit, also known as the First Ukrainian Division, was “responsible for the mass murder of innocent civilians with a level of brutality and malice that is unimaginable.” Another Canada-based advocacy group, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, said it was "deeply troubled & disturbed." Michael Mostyn, CEO of Jewish human rights organization B'nai Brith Canada, called the invitation and ovation "beyond outrageous." Rota, the Commons speaker, said that he alone was responsible for inviting Hunka, who lives in the area he represents, implying that neither Zelenskyy nor Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau knew about it.

• Gender

  male

• Instance Of

  Q5

• Occupation

  military personnel

• Citizenship

  Second Polish Republic

• Date Of Birth

  3/19/1925

• Place Of Birth

  Urman