15 April 2010
Mississauga, Ontario
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Dobry Wieczor. Good evening. Thank you, Father Provincial Janusz Blazejak, Provincial of Missionary Oblates, for your kind introduction.
Your Grace, Archbishop Collins, reverend fathers, Ambassador Kosiniak-Kamysz, distinguished guests and colleagues from the Parliament of Canada.
Sons and daughters of Poland and Canada, President Barycki [President of the Polish-Canadian Congress], ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the Government and people of Canada, I want to express the profound sorrow all Canadians feel in the wake of the plane crash at Smolensk.
The loss of President Kaczynski, the First Lady Maria Kaczynska and so many other important national leaders is a devastating blow. Certainly, I remember with pleasure, but now also with sadness, I remember my own meetings with President Kaczynski at various summits since 2006. He was a man who stood proudly and defiantly for freedom, democracy and Polish independence through even the most difficult times.
To express our solidarity with the Polish people during their grief, our Government has declared today a national day of mourning in Canada. The fact that this tragic event took place so near Katyn, the location of the 70th anniversary of the massacre of thousands of Poland’s military, political and intellectual leadership is a cruel irony indeed. Few countries in the world have endured so much, so often, at the hands of unforgiving fate as has Poland.
But fewer still have demonstrated so much resilience in response to their hardships. After decades of suffering under the Nazis and Communists, Poland has flourished under freedom. It has built one of Europe’s most successful post-Communist economies, and it has become a strong, independent member of the European Union and the NATO alliance.
The enduring strength of the Polish people is rooted in their unflagging faith in God, their unshakeable commitment to family, and their unbroken capacity for forgiveness. The great Polish Pope, John Paul the Second, embodied the character of his countrymen. In spite of the horrors he witnessed in 20th-century Europe, he never lost hope. ‘Do not abandon yourselves to despair,’ he said. ‘We are the Easter people and hallelujah is our song.’ This is a timeless and comforting truth.
The people of Poland can also draw strength from the million-strong community of Canadians of Polish descent. For over a century and a half, Poles fleeing oppression in Europe have found sanctuary in Canada. They have made immeasurable contributions to our country in every field of human endeavour. And today, they are the sturdy foundation of a warm, deep and strong friendship between Canada and Poland, a friendship I witnessed first-hand, during my trip to Poland.
When Poland grieves, Canada grieves. We stand with the victims of Katyn, then and now, and we stand with the people of Poland, and you, the people of Polonia forever. Dziekuje Barzo.
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