Ukrainian Independence Day, a main national holiday across the country of Ukraine, takes place each year on 24 August and commemorates the day when Ukraine became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991.
According to the latest available data from Luxembourg’s national statistics agency, STATEC, Ukrainian nationals represent the highest number of immigrations to Luxembourg from one individual country since 1 January 2022, with 4,268. This massive influx of Ukrainian immigrants is due to the ongoing war in Ukraine.
No mass events are planned for this year due to martial law being in place, but some local celebrations are in the works for the 32nd anniversary of the country's independence. According to the Kyiv City Military Administration, from 23:00 on 20 August to 23:30 on 28 August 2023, traffic on Khreshchatyk, Kyiv's main street, is being blocked for the preparation and holding of Independence Day celebrations. An exhibition of damaged enemy equipment is being held on Khreshchatyk.
On the occasion of Ukraine’s Independence Day, Chronicle.lu reached out to two Ukrainian nationals living in Luxembourg and who are involved in their community here, namely Olena Neskorodiana, a representative of LUkraine asbl, and Evgenia Paliy, Luxembourg-Ukraine Chamber of Commerce (LUCC) representative, to find out more about the signification of this celebration and what plans there are to celebrate it both in Ukraine and Luxembourg.
Olena explained: “before the beginning of the Russian war against Ukraine in 2014, Independence Day was more dedicated to celebrating Ukrainian sovereignty and freedom. However, since then, it has been more related to commemorating those Ukrainians who sacrificed their lives to defend the country, reminding everyone of the price of Ukraine's independence and the fact that victory depends on everyone”. She lamented Ukrainians’ inability to gather in public, due to Russia’s full-scale invasion. However, she confirmed that a number of exhibitions will take place across the country to display damaged Russian combat vehicles and other bits of hardware. She stressed how meaningful it is for Ukrainians abroad to celebrate Independence Day with foreigners, adding that it represents international solidarity and support of Ukraine in this war.
Olena also told Chronicle.lu that LUkraine hosts a traditional annual celebration in Luxembourg and that this year's theme for Ukraine’s Independence Day celebration will be kites, symbols of freedom and resilience. A festival is being organised on Saturday 26 August 2023, from 15:00 to 21:00 in Hesper park (Hesperange). Various workshops will be on offer for children and adults alike including kite-making and flying, beadwork, traditional Ukrainian Petrykivka painting (decorative painting style often depicting flowers and plants) and vytyvanka workshops (embroidered shirts in Ukrainian and Belarusian national costumes). The headliner for the evening will be the hip-hop, rapcore, and funk Ukrainian band ТNМК, founded in Ukraine in the early '90s. Olena added that the band's members actively serve in the Ukrainian defence and armed forces, with the frontman Fagot having been part of the volunteer battalion that defended Kyiv against invasion. Furthermore, she stated that they are “dedicated volunteers who raise funds to support the Ukrainian army in their resistance”.
For her part, Evgenia Paliy noted that LUCC is not organising any celebratory events this year, due to their team’s business development travels and/or travelling to the Ukraine. “To be honest, each and every one is scared of the upcoming days and nights…but we pray for Ukraine and our defenders,” she said. She noted that, before the war, the holiday was marked by festive events and that they usually wear traditional embroidered shirts, carry blue and yellow flags and wear ribbons on their clothing. Patriotic Ukrainian music may also be performed. Evgenia confirmed that although no large-scale events will be held in Ukraine this year, several dozen diverse events of an exclusively local scale will take place in the capital. She recalled that, as the mayor of Kyiv emphasised, it is necessary to follow the safety rules and go to shelters during air raid alerts despite any festivities. The war is ongoing and “the enemy may intensify its attacks on the eve and day of the holiday.” She also mentioned the exhibition of destroyed Russian military equipment, explaining that it had been on display last year as well, “as a symbolic act of rebuffing Russia's aggression and showing Ukraine that it is ready to defend its independence and territorial integrity.”
“The protracted conflict has demonstrated Ukraine's resiliency and national cohesion and given hope for a peaceful future. It is a day that reminds them of their resilience and its unity, despite the Russian aggression,” Evgenia concluded.
