The Hunka affair: Canada's Commons fallout, as of 29 September 2023
A look back at how an invitation to a Waffen-SS veteran during Volodymyr Zelenskyy's visit to Ottawa ended with the Speaker's resignation.
What was the state of the controversy in Canada's House of Commons on 29 September 2023? It had already cost the Speaker his post, three days after he stepped down and five days after he apologised.
The affair began on 22 September 2023, during a visit by Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Speaker Anthony Rota had invited Yaroslav Hunka, a Ukrainian Canadian, to the House of Commons. Hunka was Rota's constituent, and Rota introduced him to the chamber as a "hero". Hunka received two standing ovations from members, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, other party leaders and Zelenskyy himself.
It was later revealed that Hunka had fought in the SS Division Galicia, the Waffen-SS unit that served under Nazi command. On 24 September 2023, Rota apologised for inviting him to Parliament during Zelenskyy's visit.
The apology did not end the matter. On 26 September 2023, Rota resigned as Speaker of the House of Commons, citing the controversy over his decision to invite Hunka and to present him to the chamber in that way.
By 29 September 2023, the sequence was complete: an invitation, an ovation, a disclosure about Hunka's wartime service, an apology and a resignation, all within roughly a week of the Ukrainian president's visit.
