Kusmierczyk, Masse, Lewis and Epp named on Russian ban list

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Windsor-Tecumseh Liberal MP Irek Kusmierczyk is not the first in his family to have angered officials in Russia and he wears that fact proudly.

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Kusmierczyk, along with 300 other Canadian government officials, on Tuesday was banned from Russia for “outrageous hostility,” according to a statement by the Russian Foreign Ministry, tied to Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Kusmierczyk, who was born in Poland in a town about 100 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, recalled his father Richard Kusmierczyk’s arrest during a crackdown against political opposition and Solidarity union members in 1981 after the Russian-backed dictatorship in Poland enacted martial law.

“(Dad) was sort of the local opposition leader and because of that, in the middle of the night police came to our apartment in Poland and arrested him,” Kusmierczyk said. “He was in prison for several months.”

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When the ban list became public, Kusmierczyk’s father was one of the first to text him, saying, “Welcome to the club.”

Kusmierczyk considers being on the ban list a badge of honour.

“We wear it as a badge of honour,” he said. “And we know that we’re doing the right thing. We know that standing with Ukraine is the right thing.

“And opposing this unlawful and terrible Russian aggression and invasion is the absolute right thing to do. And so this just validates that.”

The ban list was a response from Russia after more than 900 Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian politicians, military officers and influential business leaders were placed on Canada’s sanctions list.

Windsor West MP Brian Masse, Essex MP Chris Lewis and Chatham-Kent-Leamington MP Dave Epp also were named on the Russian list.

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Masse called it “a small (price) to pay” considering the consequences faced by people in Ukraine.

“I continue to work really hard and will continue to do even more so with my connections in the United States and also internationally, to keep pushing for sanctions and a crackdown on the oligarchs and the continuation of restitution and justice for what’s been taking place, Masse said.

Lewis also dismissed the Russian sanction.

“If supporting Ukrainian children, through donations, is a crime in the eyes of Vladimir Putin, so be it,” Lewis said. “It is the least I could do in the face of this growing humanitarian crisis.

“I will always stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine.”

Kusmierczyk has been working with members of the local Ukrainian community, church leadership and staff at local settlement agencies to plan for an expected influx of refugees.

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He purchased a wrap of the Windsor Star recently “so folks could put that in their window and demonstrate their solidarity.

“We want to help out as much as we possibly can,” he said. “We want to demonstrate that we’re in solidarity, that we are standing with Ukrainians, that we’re standing with the community both in Ukraine and here at home as well.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed members of parliament virtually Tuesday in what Kusmierczyk described as an “unforgettable moment.”

“It was an incredibly emotional speech and especially when he asked us to put ourselves in their shoes, in the shoes of Ukrainians,” he said. “Experiencing, you know at 4 o’clock in the morning being woken up by bombs.

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“It was the most incredible, remarkable and unforgettable speech I’ve ever heard. It was unbelievable.”

Kusmierczyk said Canada has felt almost $70 million worth of lethal and non-lethal military equipment — rocket launchers, ammunition, anti-tank weapons, body armor, night vision goggles, ration packs — to Ukraine as well as imposed economic sanctions.

“Those economic sanctions are really impacting and choking off Putin’s war chest and that is absolutely critical,” he said. “And we see the impact.

“Russia’s economy is tanking as we speak and that has a huge impact on their ability to wage war.”

In addition, Canada has committed about $100 million through the United Nations and for humanitarian aid and is matching $30 million of donations made by Canadians to the Red Cross.

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And lastly, Kusmierczyk said the Canadian government will support Ukraine through immigration, by fast-tracking applications to allow Ukrainians to come to Canada on a two-year travel visa to work or study, as well as for those who want to become permanent residents.

“But again more needs to be done in terms of getting Ukrainians the support and the resources that they absolutely need,” Kusmierczyk said.

“And more needs to be done to support countries like Poland, like Moldova and others that are taking in large numbers of Ukrainian refugees.”

Poland has already admitted approximately 1.8 million Ukrainian refugees.

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