Historian Liubomyr Lutsiuk: International recognition of the Holodomor as a genocide of the Ukrainian people will continue

Professor Liubomyr Lutsiuk, Senior Research Fellow at the Department of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Toronto, shared his view in a comment to Ukrinform: more and more countries around the world will recognise the Holodomor as an act of genocide against the Ukrainian people.

“I am sure that international recognition of the Holodomor as genocide against the Ukrainian people will continue, although resistance to this still exists. For instance, neither the US nor the UK has officially recognised the Holodomor as genocide at the state level. Israel also continues to avoid such a designation. However, when compared to the situation several decades ago, the progress has been enormous,” said Mr Lutsiuk.

He emphasised that global awareness regarding the Holodomor has increased significantly since Ukraine gained independence.

“Books have been written about the Holodomor, films have been made, and conferences and academic research are being conducted. This topic is gaining increasing attention not only from Ukrainians but also from international experts in the fields of history, political science, demography and so on,” added the professor.

In his view, “it is very important that research is becoming more comprehensive and accurate”.

“Whereas previously we relied largely on eyewitness accounts, we now have demographic studies, archives, interdisciplinary approaches, and even elements of forensic archaeology. It is a gradual process, but the world is coming to understand the scale of the tragedy and its significance for Ukrainian history ever more clearly,” he remarked.

It is well known that Canada was one of the first countries to recognise the Holodomor as an act of genocide against the Ukrainian people. Furthermore, it was in Edmonton, Canada, back in 1983 that the world’s first monument to the Holodomor victims was erected.

Photo from Liubomyr Lutsiuk’s personal archive.