He Speaker of the Canadian House of Commons, Anthony Rota, has announced his resignation after the scandal caused by the tribute paid to a ukrainian veteran what fought with the Nazis during World War II, during the President’s visit Volodymyr Zelensky last Friday, September 22.
“With a heavy heart, I rise to inform the members of my dimision as Speaker of the House of Commons,” Rota declared before Parliament, expressing his “deep regret for [su] error”.
“That public ovation has caused pain to people and communities, including the Jewish community in Canada and around the world… I fully accept responsibility for my actions,” Rota said, adding that his resignation would become effective this Wednesday. Until then, a deputy spokesperson will fill the role.
During the Ukrainian president’s visit in Ottawa on Friday, Rota applauded Yaroslav Hunkaa 98-year-old Ukrainian veteran, and introduced him as a “Ukrainian hero.”
But according to the Canadian Jewish advocacy group Friends of the Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC), Hunka served in the 14th SS Waffen Grenadier Division, a Nazi military unit whose crimes against humanity during the Holocaust are well documented.