More than 150 people attended a vigil on Saturday night outside the Ukrainian embassy in Ottawa to pay respects for Ukrainians who have passed away during an ongoing invasion by Russian armed forces.
Roshene Lawson, the vigil’s organizer, said she “got sick of all the hate and anger and misery that has been going on” and wanted to plan a gathering that reflected peace, love, care and support.
For weeks, leaders of countries part of international alliances such as the G7 and NATO have been raising alarms about an increased number of Russian troops at the Ukrainian border.
On Feb. 24, tensions came to a head when Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a “special military operation” in Ukraine. Since then, Ukrainian authorities and international outlets have reported explosions and direct fighting throughout the country, including the capital city of Kyiv.
“Democracy and freedom is a right that we should all have,” Lawson said in a speech to the crowd. “When it is ripped away from you, it is extremely frightening and difficult for us to know what to do … So I wanted to do something to show my love and solidarity for the Ukrainian people.”
At least 102 civilians in Ukraine have been killed since the invasion started and a further 304 are injured, said UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet during an opening session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva on Monday.
In a Twitter post the same day, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said more than 500,000 Ukrainians have fled into neighbouring countries.
Mariam Gonde, a fourth-year student at the University of Ottawa who has family in Ukraine, attended the vigil. She said she has been living a “nightmare” since Putin announced the military operation.
She has been afraid to sleep and miss an update from her mother and younger brother. “I’ve been spending the last two days not sleeping and crying and just clinging to my phone like my life depends on it because it is the only channel that connects me to my family,” Gonde said.
“[My brother] is 12, so he is really young,” Gonde said. “I can’t explain to you … the things they are seeing and the fear that they have, and when I don’t get messages from [my mother] for a little while I don’t know. Is it good? Is she maybe sleeping? Or is something happening?”
Gonde added that her mother and brother live in Zolotonosha, within the Cherkasy Oblast region. The city is in central Ukraine, far from any safe routes to a border, she said.
On Saturday, Gonde said her brother and mother hid with their neighbour in the basement because there was a sniper near their home. Her mother wrote Gonde’s brother’s name and blood type on his hand so humanitarian workers could help Gonde’s brother if he was injured, Gonde said.
“[My mother] keeps going and keeps trying to survive and be strong. And I’m here. I’m trying to be strong like her but I am losing my mind because I can’t do anything to help them,” she said.
Gonde has other friends and family in Kyiv as well, including her uncle, who is refusing to leave Kyiv “because it is his city.” Some of her friends who study or work in Kyiv evacuated to their hometown, but they told Gonde the military conflict reached their hometowns by the time they arrived back home, she added.
Despite the terrifying circumstances, Gonde said she is “feeling extremely proud of the Ukrainian community” as she pointed to the crowd.
Colleen Sinclair attended the rally with her teenage daughter, Bridget Makue. Makue’s Ukrainian grandmother currently resides in Montreal and is “very upset” because many members of their extended family are still in Ukraine.
Sinclair said she wanted their presence at the vigil to show that breaching the territorial integrity of a sovereign nation is unacceptable.
Dan Sheshko, whose father is Ukrainian, attended the rally holding a Ukrainian flag. He said now is a difficult time for the Ukrainian people and the world should hear the message: “Power to the Ukrainian people.”
Sheshko, who brought his two young children to the vigil, added he’s worried for the safety of his cousins in western Ukraine. It has been difficult for his family to see Ukraine “overthrown by a dictator,” he said.
Lawson, who has Irish heritage and is not Ukrainian, said she wanted the vigil to bring people of all backgrounds together to show “we are all a world family.” Lawson wore a mask and T-shirt featuring a heart-shaped Ukrainian flag.
Like Lawson, some attendees had no family connections to Ukraine but felt a desire to show support, including Giuseppe Sestini, a first-year student at Carleton University.
As a human being and an Italian, Sestini said he believes he has a duty to show up for the Ukrainian people. “It is about thinking globally,” he said.
“We all know Putin is not a good guy, he has done this many times,” Sestini said, referring to the 2014 annexation of Crimea and the 1999 conflict in Chechnya.
Sestini said people need to communicate opposition to Putin through social media and in the streets, as well as show support for innocent civilians impacted the most by war.
Lawson and Sheshko both said people can show their support to Ukrainians who are facing this crisis by donating to humanitarian groups like the Red Cross and by supporting aid for displaced people.
Gonde said locals should write to their elected officials to tell them to support the Ukrainian community.
“All these protests and rallies all over the world, they are important. They are a way to show people that we are here. We are not giving up and you should not give up on us either,” Gonde said.
Featured image by Arno Ryser.
