Русский митинг мира на Холме прорвал информационную блокаду

Rally attendee says diaspora feeling ‘Russia-phobic’ attitude of Harper government.
[url:3cttg5dz]http://www.embassynews.ca/news/2014/10/08/Pro-Russia-demonstrators-rally-on-Parliament-Hill/46194#[/url:3cttg5dz]
Laura Beaulne-Stuebing
Published: Wednesday, 10/08/2014 1:01 am EDT
Last Updated: Wednesday, 10/08/2014 7:50 am EDT

Parliament Hill has seen many pro-Ukrainian gatherings since the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out, but less common is the swath of Russian flags and pro-Russian, anti-Ukrainian signs and banners seen on Oct. 4.

Attendees belted out the Russian national anthem, its notes echoing around the largely empty streets of downtown Ottawa on the rainy Saturday afternoon. A dozen Russian flags billowed in the wind. Signs were hoisted that read "Canadian taxpayers shall not support Ukrainian oligarchy and war criminals," "our taxes not for Nazis," "save kids from Ukrainian army," and "Kiev Junta kills civilians," among others.

A few metres away, separated by several RCMP officers and an RCMP vehicle, was a duelling pro-Ukrainian rally with participants waving Ukrainian flags.

The pro-Russian rally was organized by Leon Mitsner, who says he’s an event planner based in Toronto. The rally, he said in a phone interview on Oct. 6 with Embassy, brought together Russian supporters from Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa.

"The message was to stop genocide in Ukraine by [the] Ukrainian army. [The] Ukrainian army is [carrying out] genocide of the Russian-speaking population in Eastern Ukraine,” Mr. Mitsner argued.

A Facebook profile with Mr. Mitsner’s name is the administrator of Russian Canada, a public Facebook group with 7,737 members. Mr. Mitsner said the members hail from all over Canada.

He organized the gathering, he said, because “I can’t be silenced," and that there would be more such rallies in the future.

He said the Canadian government was taking a one-sided position on the Russia-Ukraine conflict. He called on Prime Minister Stephen Harper “to stop supporting the war in Ukraine, because when our government is taking just one side it means they are not a peacemaker anymore.”

"Now, we are [a] war maker, because we just take one side."

The Russian Embassy did not know about the rally, said Kirill Kalinin, second secretary in the embassy’s political section.

‘We want peace’

Mr. Harper has condemned the "aggression" by Russian on "Ukrainian soil" and called Russia’s annexation of Crimea "illegal." Canada has launched economic sanctions against Russia, banned Russians from Canada and has made a show of military patrols under NATO in Eastern Europe.

Meanwhile, Mr. Harper warmly welcomed Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to Ottawa on Sept. 17 and called him a "true friend of Canada." Parliament convened that afternoon for a special joint session, with MPs and senators gathered in the House of Commons to pay special tribute to their visitor.

Mr. Mitsner said Russia is not to blame for the conflict, instead pointing the finger at Mr. Poroshenko’s government, saying "every day [the] Ukrainian army is shelling people."

“We want peace in Ukraine. We don’t want war.”

Mr. Mitsner said Mr. Harper’s actions can be explained by the upcoming federal election. The Conservative Party, he said, is catering to the massive Ukrainian diaspora in Canada, estimated at roughly 1.2 million.

“This is the voting power, right? I think it’s all about the election,” he said.

‘All Russians feel desperate’

Nadia Volguine, a former journalist who now lives in Ottawa with her husband and kids, was also at the rally on Oct. 4. She said she no longer watches mainstream Canadian media because it misrepresents what’s happening overseas.

In an interview with Embassy, Ms. Volguine said she isn’t a very political person but that the situation in Russia and Ukraine has moved her to act.

Russians outside of their home country are feeling antagonism, she suggested.

“All Russians feel desperate,” she said.

“It’s like, we feel all this Russia-phobic [attitude] and kind of—I don’t want to say ‘hate’ but…we are in multicultural Canada, and we feel like the Ukrainian community has full support. It goes against the Russian community, which is wrong.”

Canada’s ambassador for religious freedom, Andrew Bennett, is visiting Ukraine from Oct. 6 to 11 “to extend Canada’s support to the Ukrainian people,” according to a press release from Foreign Affairs.

“Together with our allies and partners we will continue to speak out with a unified voice in support of the democratic aspirations of the Ukrainian people—and against those who wish to illegally redraw the borders of Europe,” Mr. Bennett is quoted as stating.

The press release noted that Mr. Bennett will meet with government officials in Kyiv and Lviv.

lbeaulne@embassynews.ca
@laurabeaulne

—with files from Carl Meyer