“I can't believe all this happened. It's like I'm telling a horror and action film. I think I'll try to erase everything from my memory.
In her apartment in Montreal's Rosemont district, Marharyta Novak talks in detail about the events of the last few years. She pauses and is surprised at how much her life has been turned upside down by the war. I didn't think I would have so much to say. It's like it's not real.
And yet this Ukrainian woman, who has lived in Quebec for three years, has experienced great moments of fear.
On the morning of February 24, she described her despair as she woke up to see the news.
“We realized that the war had begun and that the world had changed while we slept.”
– A quote from Marharyta Novak
Her phone was full of messages from friends and family. But she had no news of her father, who was finishing his shift at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. When she found out he hadn't come home, she suspected something was wrong.
Finally he answered his cell phone and tried to calm his daughter down. Yes, the Russians had occupied the power plant, but everything was fine, he said.
He didn't really know what was going on or how long he had to stay. I thought it would be two or three days.
Eventually, his father and a hundred workers were held hostage for a month. The Russians forced them to stay at their workplaces and sleep on chairs or on the floor. All their movements were controlled and supplies were limited.
“My father was brave. He was calm. He didn't want me to be nervous. But it had the opposite effect. I knew he wasn't telling me everything. »
– A quote from Marharyta Novak
Concerned that the Russians might read their text messages, Marharyta and her father sent each other short voice messages, which they immediately deleted.
After a few days the news stopped. The Russians had confiscated all the phones.
Only the manager of the plant received brief information about the situation at the plant, which he then passed on to the families of the hostages.
To add to the concerns, on March 9, 2024, the lines supplying electricity to Chernobyl were cut due to the fighting.
Marharyta was born in Slavutych, a satellite town of Chernobyl, and was well aware of the risks of this incident. Her father always worked at the Chernobyl power plant and Marharyta worked on the project to build a safety arch for the damaged reactor.
It was a worst-case scenario, she said, adding that she couldn't breathe again until five days later, when supplies were restored.
The workers were released on March 29; his father returned to Slavutych, emaciated and angry.
Since then he has spoken very little about what happened. “But I feel like it hit him hard,” Marharyta said, crying.
“I'm glad they weren't tortured because the Russians needed them to work,” she consoles herself.
Even though he had been released, Marharyta was worried about him and his mother-in-law. Slavutych was slowly running out of food. I wanted to send money. My mother-in-law said to me: What is money for if there is nothing to buy?
Then the Russians tried to occupy Slavutych and kidnapped the mayor (New Window). But the citizens fought back. They all gathered in the city center and asked the Russians to leave. Nobody was injured.
What made matters worse was that his father had to return to the nuclear power plant two weeks after his dismissal to replace his colleagues. Marharyta was disturbed by the idea that he might return to where the Russians had held him hostage.
“He told me, ‘If I don’t go, who will take care of the power plant?’ I was proud of him, but I was also frustrated.”
– A quote from Marharyta Novak
He recently decided to take early retirement.
Marharyta also lost a dozen people around her. One of his people was his father-in-law. When Crimea was annexed by Russia in 2014, he was supposed to join Marharyta's mother, who lives in Toronto, but he chose military service instead. The couple separated. He was killed at the front a month after the invasion in February 2022.
Therefore, it is not surprising when Marharyta says she lived in complete fog for months. I was working, but I wasn't there mentally. I spent my time thinking about the worst, about what happened there. I felt guilty about being here.
In the summer of 2022, while Marharyta and her husband are in Greece for a friends' wedding, she decides on a whim to travel to Ukraine.
I was so close to Ukraine. My parents and grandparents are there. I asked myself: What if I never see him again? It was irrational. I couldn't help it.
She chose not to inform her employer that she was teleworking from Ukraine. But the power outages became more frequent and she had to admit to her employer that she was not in Montreal. I was lucky; They understood, she said. After four months, she realized she had to return to Montreal.
Meanwhile, her husband had begun demonstrating in front of the Russian Consulate General in Montreal. Since then, the couple has demonstrated regularly with a small group.
I know it sounds mean, but we're going there to piss them off. It made her angry, she said. On one of the signs she is holding we can read the lyrics of a Ukrainian song called “A Lullaby for the Enemy” (New Window).” HAT:
I pity you, my enemy
It's a shame you chose this path
You are approaching your death like a madman (…)
You will sleep forever in this cold ground (…)
You wanted these countries
Now your body is mixed in it
You are my country now
The country of Lubov Bondarchuk is Mariupol. When she talks about her hometown, Lubov Bondarchuk sheds tears. By taking over the city, the Russians destroyed almost everything in their path. His neighborhood, his old business no longer exists.
Lubov left Mariupol in 2014, during Russia's annexation of Crimea. The Ukrainian armed forces had managed to protect Mariupol. The people of Mariupol could live in peace for several more years, she said.
She had a children's toy store, but the conflict with the Russians made the economic situation in Mariupol more difficult. She decided to follow her son, daughter-in-law and little daughter to Kiev.
The evening before the invasion, Lubov said he had trouble sleeping; she expected an attack by the Russians. At 4 a.m. Putin began the bombing campaign. Putin liked Hitler. He attacked in the middle of the night.
Despite the attacks, Lubov still went to work the next morning. I worked at a grocery store and knew people would need food.
She also helped prepare food, tea and coffee for the people in the underground bunker beneath the grocery store. People were sad, upset, they didn't know what to do.
After a week, Lubov went to live with a cousin in Ivano-Frankivsk. When the Russians withdrew from the Kiev region, she returned to the capital and to her job in the grocery store.
Every time she sees the extent of the destruction in Mariupol, Lubov is heartbroken. I cried every day. She has also lost contact with several friends and doesn't know whether they are still alive.
For their part, Olena and Kira fled Ukraine shortly after the invasion to stay with a friend in Italy. Her husband stayed to help defend Kiev.
“We thought it would take a few weeks. After a month, we started saying to each other that we should think about starting a new life somewhere else.”
– A quote from Olena Bondarchuk
The family received permission to settle in Canada. Olena and Kira arrived in Montreal first. Her husband arrived five months later after receiving government permission to leave the country despite martial law. But he can be recalled at any time, Olena explains. The family settled in Rosemère.
Last November, Lubov decided to come to Canada. That is not sure. Attacks occur frequently. The apartment next to her was hit, explains Olena.
Lubov smiles when she talks about spending Christmas with family and in safety. Now she is eagerly waiting To for French courses.
Olena marvels at how her daughter is adjusting to Quebec. She even has a Quebecois accent when she speaks Ukrainian, she says with a laugh.
Although she hopes to return to Ukraine one day, Lubov is coming to terms with the idea of staying in Quebec despite all the pitfalls.
“My desire to see my family is much greater than my fear of leaving Ukraine and having to learn a new language.”
– A quote from Lubov Bondarchuk
Lubov thanks Canada for the welcome, but advocates that Ukraine receive more international help to defeat the Russians. Otherwise they will destroy our culture, our identity, our language. They want to take everything, Olena adds.
That's why Anastasiya Solianyk consciously decided not to speak Russian anymore. This woman from Kiev settled in Montreal before the war began.
The Russians asked me: “Why don’t you agree to become Russian?” but I don’t want to. I don't want to give you my house. This is our country, we are independent. My grandfather survived the Holodomor. If he hadn't survived, my parents wouldn't be alive and I wouldn't be alive. He fought and we still have to fight because Russia will never stop.
In 2014, during the Maidan Revolution, Anastasija took part in the demonstrations. We felt that Ukrainians were united, but it was a small war. The 2022 invasion is a turning point, she says.
Two months before the invasion in 2022, Anastasiya had prepared for the worst by packing her suitcase. When the bombs started falling on February 24, she called her husband, who was working on a ship in Thailand. He couldn't leave and Anastasiya had to make a decision: go or stay?
It was difficult for him. He wanted to come and save his family, she said. For her part, she feared for her safety as there were several Russian and Ukrainian crew members on board the ship. We were afraid that there would be confrontations or violence.
Anastasiya threw a few more things into her suitcases, emptied her refrigerator and quickly set off with her son and her parrot.
She was working for a French company and her superiors suggested she come to Paris. They organized everything. All I had to do was reach the border with Slovakia.
Today she feels guilty because she was able to walk without too much trouble. For me it was very easy and I know that many people couldn't go because they didn't have a car. She also took two other people and a dog with her in her car.
All roads were closed; The journey lasted four days.
“I have not slept. I don't know how I did it. Running away from war gives you so much adrenaline.”
– A quote from Anastasiya Solianyk
Anastasiya and her son stayed in France for a few months. Since her husband works for a Canadian company, the couple decided to settle in Canada. They arrived on August 26, 2022.
For Anastasiya it was the best decision of her life. The first week I arrived in Canada, I became pregnant after several miscarriages.
Despite this good news, she cried every day as she watched what was happening in Ukraine. Her husband had to convince her to take a step back for the sake of her and her baby's health.
Anastasiya also noticed how upset her son was about all these changes. In France he received many toys, but he never unpacked them. He told me he didn't want to do it until he got home. When we got to our apartment in Montreal, he ran to his room and unpacked everything. He felt at home.
When her mother visited her, she slept constantly. She could finally sleep safely. Anastasiya says she didn't realize how stressed she was.
That's why she worries about the mental health of her friends and relatives in Ukraine.
“You lose a little taste for life. Sirens, bombs, this is their new reality and they have to adapt. But it's not a normal life.
– A quote from Anastasiya Solianyk
She says she has great respect for those who remained in Ukraine. She hopes to be able to return there one day and help rebuild the country.
The war strengthened her Ukrainian identity, Anastasiya says, adding that when she arrived in Canada she felt compelled to deepen her knowledge of Ukrainian history and culture. She strives to pass on certain traditions to her children. I am responsible for educating the next generation of Ukrainians.
Jannah Lesnic has been in Canada for 13 years, but like Anastasiya, Ukrainian culture remains important. She proudly wears the vychyvanka, a Ukrainian embroidered shirt, and speaks with great love of her hometown Ivano-Frankivsk.
The invasion was a big shock. I just cried.
Two years later, he is hardly ever asked about his relatives in Ukraine. She hesitates to broach the subject too often for fear of being disturbed. I see that the world is not interested.
Jannah feels particularly powerless in the face of this conflict; especially since his cousin and a childhood friend decided to join the army.
His cousin, in his mid-fifties, joined the armed forces despite health problems. He can't go into battle, but he trains young soldiers and takes over surveillance.
I honestly don't know how [ces soldats] make. I think she's really brave. Because of their patriotism and strength of character, they did not want to stay at home. There was no doubt in her mind; they had to do that. Even two years later, they still think it's the right thing to do.
Since soldiers are not allowed to have cell phones, she experiences fear for a long time before receiving messages.
She decided to turn her fear into action.
The Canada Post mail carrier spoke to her colleagues and customers along the way. She raised money to buy equipment for the unit that includes her cousin: heating tapes, boots, night vision goggles, batteries for radios, drones.
They are truly grateful for everything. They didn't feel alone or abandoned, Jannah said, adding that her cousin often asked for photos of their children and their life in Quebec. It gives them hope that one day the war will be over.
As a thank you, the brigade sent him two flags with the soldiers' battle names on them; a gift she treasures with great pride.
Jannah is hesitant to criticize the government during the war, but she becomes concerned when her cousin tells her that the troops are increasingly lacking equipment and ammunition.
Despite the difficult conditions and exhaustion, they proudly assert that they are still holding the defenses of Zaporizhzhia, a city that the Russians have been trying to take for two years.
That is why she is firmly convinced that the strength of the Ukrainians will prevail.
We managed to defeat the Russians thanks to our character, our patriotism, our complicity, not thanks to our leaders. It's the women who prepare the food, it's simple men like my cousin, like my neighbor, like my school friends who fight, it's the people who fight.