Editor:
In the history books of Ukraine, Feb. 24, 2022, will be recorded as the day the lives of every single Ukrainian changed forever; for that was the day that Russia's leader, Vladimir Putin, ordered the unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
In the year that followed, hundreds of thousands of military personnel, on both sides of the conflict, have been killed or wounded, millions of women, children and the elderly have been displaced from their homes.
The Russian leadership expected Ukrainians to greet the invaders with cheers and flowers and that any skirmishes would be wrapped up in weeks, if not days. Yet, here we are, a year later, and Ukrainians are more united, and more determined, in beating off this menace than they have ever been in their country's history.
But, the struggle is not just between two far-away countries; it is a struggle between rule of law and rule by force; a struggle between life as we know it in the free world and life in an oppressive dictatorship, not just for Ukraine, but for much of Eastern and Central Europe.
The free world has been extremely generous in its support for Ukraine. While governments have supplied military training and sophisticated weapons, their citizens have opened their homes to displaced families and gathered and shipped non-military aid for wounded soldiers and civilians, both financial and non-financial, such as clothing and badly needed medical supplies.
We all have a chance to Stand with Ukraine at a rally this Sunday, Feb. 26, at 3 p.m. at Jack Poole Plaza in Vancouver. I urge all who value freedom and democracy defeating autocracy and tyranny to come out on Sunday and show support for the all-too-real life and death struggle over good and evil.
R. Sawycky
