Canterbury church hosts Holodomor remembrance service

KentOnline / KMTV

Organisers of a Canterbury remembrance service held in memory of millions of Ukrainians who were starved to death by the Soviet regime, say its important also to recognise those struggling in the country presently.  On the 92nd anniversary of the atrocity, our Community Reporter, Henry Luck, has been to Canterbury to learn more about this dark chapter.

Transcript

00:00Holodomor, meaning death by hunger, was a famine that remains with many Ukrainian people

00:09almost a century since it happened. The people of Canterbury and Ukrainians have gathered at

00:18St Peter's Methodist Church to pay their respects to those who died during the Holodomor

00:27in the 1930s. I think it's important for us to remember because it brings, it helps us to

00:35acknowledge the lives, the millions of lives that were lost and also it reminds us the importance

00:42of us not to allow such things to happen again and Canterbury has a thriving Ukrainian community,

00:50they're part of our community and I want us to be able to recognise and support them in this time.

00:57This Holodomor experience is also made up of the Canterbury for Ukraine ladies choir who have come

01:09to unite in strength through the power of music despite the terrible times of war.

01:16Since getting to know Ukrainians I understand how important this history of the famine is. I myself

01:26an Irish woman and I grew up with stories of the Irish famine so I can identify and empathise with those

01:33stories of the famine in Ukraine and it is very much about having empathy with people.

01:40As well as music candles were also used to remember those who died many years ago.

01:49So we keep this tradition, it's a new tradition, we didn't have it before, it was brought to Ukraine by

01:56an American person to whom we are eternally thankful. He said actually once, your dad chose me.

02:05And those are the words which are put on his grave in Kyiv when he died in 2004 I think.

02:15The people of Ukraine and Canterbury hope the flames of the victims will always be in the hearts

02:23and minds of those who have come to remember Holodomor. Henry Luck for KMTV in Canterbury.

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