The Ukrainian authorities are against parades on May 9 and want to replace February 23 with the Day of Remembrance of the “Heavenly Hundred”
Kyiv, April 25 (Navigator, Mikhail Ryabov) – Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine Alexander Sych, who oversees humanitarian policy, opposes parades on May 9 and wants to replace February 23 with the Day of Remembrance of the “Heavenly Hundred”.
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“The government is now discussing approaches regarding this date and believes that the most acceptable format would be to abandon loud celebrations and propose holding prayer services. The point is that the main content of these celebrations is to honor the memory of all those who died in that war, on which side of the front, whether of their own free will or not, they would not have fought,” he said in an interview with the RBC-Ukraine agency.
“For me personally, this date is a day of remembrance for all those killed. Moreover, it is precisely this interpretation that is relevant for millions of Ukrainian families. After all, their relatives often died on both sides of the front, fighting both against the Nazis and against the Bolshevik occupation of Ukraine,” the official added.
“Recent history has given us the feat of the Heavenly Hundred, which should also be noted. Since February 20 became the day of the mass death of heroes, I, while still in the status of a people’s deputy, together with my colleagues, submitted a bill to celebrate this date as Defender of the Fatherland Day. It should replace the Soviet holiday of February 23, which is ideologically alien to us and not connected with Ukrainian history,” says Sych.
Ukrainian authorities are against parades on May 9 and want to replace February 23 with the Day of Remembrance of the "Heavenly Hundred"