Ukraine Defenders Day marches feature OUN and UPA references

During Defenders of Ukraine Day celebrations on October 1, marches in several cities in western Ukraine featured strong references to the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA).

In Kolomyia, located in the Ivano-Frankivsk region, participants held a torchlight procession that concluded with the lighting of the ‘Watry sławy’ (Flame of Glory). The event, which included members of the Tryzub organization, scouts, veterans, and families of fallen soldiers, began at a monument to Stepan Bandera. Participants chanted slogans such as ‘Bandera – our hero.’

Ukrainian historian Marta Hawryszko criticized the celebrations on social media, noting that the events drew problematic parallels between the modern Ukrainian army and the OUN and UPA. She highlighted that these historical groups are associated with collaboration with Nazi Germany during the Holocaust and ethnic cleansing against Poles in Volhynia.