A demand for transparency about his country’s past. On Wednesday October 4, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he was considering making public a list of former alleged collaborators of the Third Reich who emigrated to Canada after the Second World War.

This announcement follows the controversial visit, Friday, September 22, of a former soldier from a Nazi unit to the Canadian parliament. This day, on the occasion of the visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, members of the House of Commons gave Yaroslav Hunka, 98, a standing ovation.

Also read: Waffen SS veteran in Canadian Parliament, the underside of a misstep

This “Ukrainian hero, Canadian hero”, in the words of the president of the chamber, was presented as a former member of the Ukrainian first division. Two days later, Jewish organizations recalled that this faction, created in 1943, was in reality the SS Galicia Division, accused of having perpetrated numerous massacres. Since then, Justin Trudeau has denounced an “unacceptable” and “deeply embarrassing” act. The president of parliament resigned.

“We have ensured that senior officials examine the issue very carefully, including by delving into the archives, and they will make relevant recommendations to the ministers concerned,” detailed the Prime Minister, Wednesday morning, arriving at the caucus – a closed meeting – of his party. His Minister of the Interior, Marc Miller, added that “impunity is not an option”.

Jagmeet Singh, the leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) in the house, with whom Justin Trudeau’s minority Liberal party has an agreement to govern until 2025, affirmed that his group would support the disclosure of these documents, reports La Presse . Conservative elected official Gérald Deltell expressed his reluctance. Conservative MP Melissa Lantsman, the party’s deputy leader, said Canadians need to know the truth about the “dark history” of their country, which “let the Nazis walk through the door to live in peace and security.” security”.

Around 2,000 Ukrainian members of the Waffen-SS settled in Canada after the Second World War, according to the Simon Wisenthal Center. In 1986, a public inquiry, the Deschênes Commission, issued an independent report on the alleged presence of more than 800 Nazi war criminals on Canadian territory, but did not disclose any names. This is what certain Jewish associations in the country, such as B’nai Brith and the Friends of the Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC) are demanding.