The First World Congress of Free Ukrainians (WUCF) was held in New York on November 12-19, 1967, which later, after the declaration of independence of Ukraine, was transformed into the Ukrainian World Congress (WUC). The event became the first mass manifestation of Ukrainian unity in the church, public and political spheres of life, gathering over a thousand delegates from 17 countries of the world. Today, the WUC is one of the leading organizations of global Ukrainianism.
This was reported Ukrainian World Congress.
The opening of the 1967 Congress was timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Ukrainian Revolution and the 25th anniversary of the creation of the UPA, and the festivities themselves were accompanied by singing, folk dances, chants and demonstrations. As part of the event, key documents were adopted – “The First Manifesto to the Ukrainian People” and “Address to Ukrainians Outside Ukraine”, which reflected the vision of the Ukrainian diaspora regarding cooperation, goals and means of achieving them.
“In the awakened spirituality and conscience of a free Ukrainian, the World Congress of Free Ukrainians sets a program: Ukraine must be Ukrainian; the most tender strings of our feelings must be Ukrainian; the young Ukrainian generation must be Ukrainian; we must prepare a future for Ukraine that is more joyful and dignified than all its previous brightest historical days…”, – announced.opening the Congress, Father Prelate Vasyl Kushnir, who later headed the organization.
On that day, the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA), the Ukrainian Canadian Committee (UCC), the Coordination Center of Ukrainian Public Central Institutions of Europe, the Union of Ukrainian Organizations of Australia, the Ukrainian Central Representation of Argentina, and the Coordination Committee of Ukrainian Organizations of Brazil.
The preparation of the Congress took place within the framework of the Pan-American Ukrainian Conference and was the result of the active work of a number of figures, among them - the president of the UCC, Father Vasyl Kushnir, the secretary of the UCC, Volodymyr Kokhan, the editor of the newspaper "Ukrainian Voice" Ivan Syrnyk, a member of the Ukrainian Nationalists' Party Mykola Plaviuk, the head of the press bureau of the League for the Liberation of Ukraine Mykhailo Sosnovsky, a member of the UCCA, Yosyp Lysohor, and representatives of churches.
The UCC saw its task as providing assistance to the Ukrainian people in the struggle for independence, coordinating the activities of the organization's members, and strengthening Ukrainian cultural and national traditions abroad. “Preserving the Ukrainian national substance” and supporting the spiritual life of Ukrainians abroad became the central tasks of the organization.
Within the framework of the Congress, world congresses of scientists, cultural figures, cooperators, teachers, journalists, students and youth were held. The Presidium of the Ukrainian Catholic University of Ukraine was elected for a six-year term on a rotational basis between Canada, the USA and Germany. The leadership of the Ukrainian Catholic University of Ukraine was headed by President Fr. Vasyl Kushnir (Canada), after whom the Presidents were Joseph Lysohir (USA) and Antin Melnyk (Germany).
The founding of the Ukrainian Catholic University of Ukraine became an important symbol of the consolidation of the Ukrainian diaspora, which by the end of the 1960s numbered about 8.5 million people. The Ukrainian Catholic University of Ukraine proclaimed the principles of adherence to democratic traditions, observance of freedoms, respect for human and peoples' rights, while coordinating support for the national movement in Ukraine.
Today, the Ukrainian World Congress unites over 20 million Ukrainians in 53 countries, actively supports the people of Ukraine and strengthens the position of world Ukrainians in the international arena. The organization is recognized by the UN Economic and Social Council as a non-governmental organization with special consultative status.
The creation of the Ukrainian World Congress was an important milestone in the development of the political maturity of the Ukrainian nation and the formation of the conceptual foundations of the activities of the Ukrainian diaspora, laying the foundation for further support for the independence, territorial integrity and European development of Ukraine.
Photo: ukrainianpeople.us
Author: Danylo Pievchev