On Saturday, November 22, Ukraine commemorates the victims of the Holodomors.
This day of remembrance is observed annually on the fourth Saturday of November, based on the decrees of the President from 1998 and 2007.
In the 20th century, Ukrainians experienced three major Holodomors: in 1921-1923, 1932-1933, and the famine of 1946-1947. The most severe was the famine of 1932-1933, which is recognized as a genocide of the Ukrainian people perpetrated by the Stalinist regime.
Preceding the famine were forced collectivization of agriculture, repression against peasants, and terror in the villages. The famine, which lasted for 22 months, was a result of a deliberate policy of the Stalinist government starting in 1928, aimed at subjugating the Ukrainian peasantry and destroying independent farms.
After extensive repression of the intelligentsia, the victims of the regime included the peasants.
Several significant events preceded the famine in Ukraine. Notably, on November 18, 1932, a resolution by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine was adopted to reinforce grain procurements, which included punishments for failing to meet grain collection plans. Peasant farms faced confiscation of their food supplies.
A few days later, on November 26, a decree from the People's Commissar of Justice emphasized that repression was a powerful means of overcoming class resistance to grain procurement. Thus, the artificially created famine became a well-planned punitive operation.
Initially, the grain cultivated by Ukrainian peasants was seized, followed by their last food supplies through numerous confiscations and searches. In December 1932, trade in products was banned in 82 regions of Ukraine. By early 1933, peasants lost the last hope for salvation as they were prohibited from leaving famine-stricken Ukraine. Left without bread, peasant families resorted to consuming various substitutes.
The terror of famine that lasted for 22 months claimed approximately 4 million lives, according to official data.
For decades, the topic of the Holodomor was taboo. Under the communist regime, discussing the famine of those years was strictly forbidden. Research into this tragedy began only in the late 1980s.
According to the law on the Holodomor of 1932-1933, adopted on November 28, 2006, the famine is recognized as an act of genocide against the Ukrainian people.
To date, 29 countries have recognized the Holodomor of 1932-1933 as genocide against the Ukrainian people at the parliamentary level.
Today, more than 90 years after the tragedy, Russia continues its attempts to erase Ukraine from the world map and destroy the Ukrainian people and culture.
As per tradition, on this day Ukrainians light candles of remembrance for those who perished in the artificial famine. Additionally, at 4:00 PM, there will be a nationwide moment of silence.