[PHOTOS] Candlelight vigil in solidarity with Ukraine in Quebec City

UPDATE DAY

One year to the day after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, dozens of people wearing the yellow and blue flag braved the cold Friday evening to march through the streets of Quebec.  

Across the country, thousands of Canadians also participated in a series of rallies in support of Ukraine on Friday. 

Throughout the province, candlelight vigils were held in Montreal, Granby and Quebec. A little before 7 p.m., the group slowly headed towards the Tourny fountain and the National Assembly. 

“We pay tribute to all our heroes who fight,” said one participant.  

Population support does not seem to be weakening, on the contrary, according to Anna Spirina, a pianist from Lévis of Ukrainian origin. 

< p>“Are we still going to highlight the war in a year? I hope we will mark peace and victory in 2023. I hope this is the last time we mark this date,” she mentioned. 

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Important signs

US President Joe Biden's recent visit to Ukraine also had special significance for the Ukrainian people. “It's important for everyone.” 

Closer to us, the thousands of people at the Videotron Center to support young hockey players have shown that every gesture counts. 

Several federal politicians also took part in the rally in the capital.

“It is very important to support Ukraine. There are refugees and people who have been here for a long time. As elected, we must tell them that we are there. It is not yet clear why Putin did this. As Canadians, we have never really experienced a war on our territory. You have to put yourself in their shoes,” said Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative MP for the riding of Charlesbourg–Haute-Saint-Charles. 

“We were hoping not to not be there a year later. There are 43 million Ukrainians of whom we are thinking, who are in Ukraine, and eight million refugees elsewhere in the world and 160,000 whom we have welcomed to Canada in recent months,” added Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health in Ottawa and Member of Parliament for the riding of Quebec in the House of Commons. 

An inspiration

“Day 1 was already one day too many. The Ukrainian people are still standing tall despite the terrible horrors and tragedies they are going through. They are an inspiration. I never thought I would see, in my lifetime, a so-called traditional war and that's what we see,” said Gérard Deltell, MP for Louis-Saint-Laurent. 

To Quebec, the Ukrainian flag flew from the central tower of the Parliament Building on Friday. 

“The conflict in Ukraine has been going on for a year now and is ravaging the country. Today, Ukraine is on the front line of the democratic world. Ukrainians are fighting for their own freedom, but also for us, for our freedom,” said Premier François Legault. 

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