Another commemoration of Irina Farion was unveiled in Lviv – the erstwhile nationalist organization Swoboda, known for its many controversial statements on Polish-Ukrainian relations, language and history. The celebration took place on the second anniversary of her death.
The fresh memory space was created in the courtyard at Masaryka Street, close the site where Farion was fatally shot on 19 July 2024. The central component of the installation is made of copper stela with a tallness exceeding human growth. On its 4 walls are the words “language”, “freedom”, “nation” and “force”, while inside is simply a stone with 20 quotations attributed to the erstwhile parliamentarian.
Mer Lwowa Andry Sadowy stressed that the materials utilized to build the monument would change over time, but – as he pointed out – the memory of Farion is to stay alive. This is another commemoration of a erstwhile politician in the city. Last year, 1 of the streets in Lviv was named after her.
Iryna Farion was a linguist, lecturer at Lviv University of Technology and activist of the Nationalist Nationalist Unity of the Ukrainian “Svoboda”. She was a associate of the ultimate Council of Ukraine from 2012 to 2014.
Her activities have been controversial for years. During the “UpA Fame March” in Lviv in 2014, she publically recalled fragments of Adolf Hitler's statements. In the following years, she has repeatedly presented an highly critical position towards Poland, claiming, among others, that Warsaw illegally occupies about 19,500 km2 of the areas it describes as ethnically Ukrainian. She besides warned against the alleged Ukrainians' “salvation”.
In July 2018, she powerfully criticized the then president of the Republic of Poland Andrzej Duda after his speech during the anniversary of the Volyn massacre. On social media, Poland abandoned the business of Ukrainian lands and the persecution of Ukrainian people.
Her speech about language was besides controversial. In 2023, she attacked soldiers of the Azov regiment who spoke Russian, declaring that non-inhabitant Ukrainian should not be called Ukrainians.
Following the publicity of these statements and the investigation conducted by the safety Service of Ukraine, as well as the protests of the academic community, Farion was released from the Lviv University of Technology. A fewer months later, the court ordered her back to work.
This was not the first time her words caused a stormy debate. Already in 2010, during a gathering with children in 1 of the Lviv kindergartens, she encouraged the youngest ones bearing Russian names to leave Ukraine.
July 19, 2024 Iryna Farion was shot in the head on 1 of the streets of Lviv. In severe condition, she went to a infirmary where she died despite the efforts of doctors.
A fewer days after the assassination, the Russian neo-Nazi group "National Socialism / White Power" published a manifesto attributed to the perpetrator and a recording of the shooting. The author of the paper claimed that the attack was to be motivated by opposition to Farion's extremist language views.
On July 25, 2024, Ukrainian services detained 18-year-old then Viacheslav Zinchenka, a fishy in the killing. The court proceedings are inactive pending.
Comment: The fact described in the article clearly shows how powerfully Ukraine promotes chauvinist tendencies...
