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The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC)
Lviv, Ukraine, May 13, 2003
During a press conference 13 May 2003, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic
Church (UGCC) supported the initiative of an interregional civic union, "The
Organization of Patriots of Ukraine," to conduct a research expedition
dedicated to the 70th anniversary of the Soviet-imposed famine in Ukraine
in 1932 and 1933.
Christian groups, public organizations and researchers from Ukraine and
all over the world are expected to be involved in the expedition.
The UGCC was the first church to support this initiative, later joined by
the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyivan Patriarchate and the Ukrainian
Autocephalous Orthodox Church. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow
Patriarchate expressed its support of the idea, but has not yet given
official consent.
The expedition will be headed by Anna Semeniuk, head of the "The
Organization of Patriots of Ukraine," and Redemptorist Fr. Mykhailo
Voloshyn the UGCC said in their press conference statement.
The organizers have set the following objectives for the expedition: to
arrange the burial places of the famine victims and serve memorial services
for them; to research long-term consequences of the famine and their impact
on social and political processes in the regions that suffered the greatest
losses; to acquaint the world community with the most heinous crime against
humanity, which was perpetrated in Ukraine in 1933; to consolidate Ukrainian
society on the basis of its tragic history; to conduct an international
scholarly conference entitled "Physical and Spiritual Genocide Against the
Ukrainian Nation. Methods. Problems. Consequences."
The organizers are planning that the expedition will be held in five stages.
The first stage began on 14 May and will last till 30 May, covering the
Kherson, Mykolayiv, Odesa and Vinnytsia regions.The expedition will also
entail ecological, social and economic monitoring, medical check-ups with
ultrasound diagnosing for local inhabitants, and audio and video recording
of witnesses' interviews, the UGCC stated.
The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, E-mail info@ugcc.org.ua
http://www.ugcc.org.ua/eng/news/article;455/
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