Latest news with #UkrainianHeritage
Daily Mail
23-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Video shows 'guests' at Disneyland Paris wedding rehearsal ahead of 'fake' marriage of 'scared and confused' nine-year-old Ukrainian girl to a British man in his 20s before his arrest
Eerie footage of an alleged 'wedding' between a 22-year-old Brit and nine-year-old girl at Disneyland Paris has been shared. The fairy-tale Sleeping Beauty castle was the backdrop for the £111,000 'social media' stunt, accompanied with musicians, a cake and chairs for hundreds of guests. The popular tourist attraction was hired out before it was open to the public early on Saturday morning but were not aware the event was allegedly being held for a minor. Around 100 seated guests were waiting for the ceremony to start as a female violin trio played at dawn before a stage strewn with flowers. A French broadcaster, BFM, shared the weird footage , as well as an image of a pink ribbon bracelet that read 'Margo & Jack 21st June 2025'. The Brit was arrested after park staff were shocked to see the 'scared and confused' child turn up for the event wearing what was said to be a bridal dress and four-inch heels taped to her feet, according to French newspaper Le Parisien. Her mother, who is believed to be of Ukrainian heritage and was later arrested, had reportedly said she wanted her daughter to feel like a Disney 'princess' for the day, according to DW. The girl is said to have been carried around because she could not walk in the extravagant costume. Alongside her family, 200 adult guests and 100 children aged five to 15 had been hired online for what was bizarrely advertised as a 'chic and elegant' 'rehearsal' wedding, Le Parisien reported. They were allegedly paid €200 and had to 'enter the room, sit down, stand up, applaud, and participate naturally and elegantly in this event filmed in a festive and classy atmosphere'. But organisers had booked the park for a function they said would be a genuine wedding ceremony. Police arrived on scene and took the man into custody along with the girl's 41-year-old mother. The 'groom' - who the mother allegedly said was a 'friend' - later told police the aim had been to make a video for social media. A statement issued by the prosecutor's office in the nearby town of Meaux said: 'Four people were arrested and questioned: the groom, who was believed to be the organiser of the event and is presumed to be British and aged 22; the mother of the child, a 41-year-old Ukrainian woman; and two Latvian nationals aged 55 and 24.' The 55-year-old has claimed he was recruited to play the role of the bride's father for 12,000 euros but discovered last minute she was nine years old, local news reports. The prosecutor's statement added 'police custody of the British suspect and a Latvian national was also extended on charges of fraud and money laundering'. Disneyland Paris was reportedly deceived about the nature of the event, with the organiser assuming the 'identity of a Latvian national' and using 'false documents to secure the conclusion of the contract for privatising the park', BFM TV reports. The event costs the organisers $130,000 (£111,000), BFM added. However, Le Parisien reported that the man had presented himself 'as a future Irish groom living in Germany'. They highlighted that filming at Disneyland Paris is strictly forbidden and so 'the man may have devised this subterfuge to obtain images of the park'. Disneyland Paris told Le Parisien the event was immediately shut down by its team and that guests were stopped from entering the premises. The prosecutor's office confirmed today that a criminal investigation has opened. Circumstances around the wedding remain unclear, but a medical examination of the young girl found she had not suffered any violence, the prosecutor's office said. Officials added they were not ruling out that the event may have been a prank, with the guests attending as possible 'extras'. The groom had said that he was the director of a production company and they were shooting a video, a police source later told Le Parisien. A source who claimed to have been a wedding guest told Le Parisien: 'We all thought we were going to attend a wedding... Everyone was stunned, no one expected it. Disneyland did things very well. 'They cancelled everything as soon as they realized the bride was a child. We were shocked to see that.' The extras said they had been driven from central Paris on buses at 5am and handed pink bracelets with the names of the 'bride and groom' printed on them. 'Guests' were told filming was to remain strictly confidential - white chairs, a large cake, musicians and a castle were in place to make the ceremony look realistic, BFM reports. One extra, named Yeleen, who attended the ceremony with her daughter, said: 'I saw a little girl dressed in white. I saw her hair prepared with curls and a lady picking her up in her arms. 'At that moment, I was shocked. I realised when I saw the child. It was atrocious.' The prosecutor's office later explained: 'So it wasn't a wedding, but a staged wedding filmed with around a hundred extras. They privatized Disneyland Paris, pretending it was a real wedding.' The prosecution has charged the two suspects with 'fraud and breach of trust' against Disneyland Paris. They will both be brought before the Meaux judicial court today as part of the opening of a judicial investigation.
CTV News
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Ukrainian community celebrates culture with food and performance in Calgary southeast
Calgarians of Ukrainian descent share the sights, sounds of food with their fellow Calgarians. Calgary's Ukrainian community is celebrating their culture and sharing it with this city this weekend at the Arcadia Recreation Centre in the southeast. The festival features two stages -- a Kyiv stage and a Lviv stage -- offering live music, dance and other cultural performances. There's plenty of food too, including borscht, varenyky (stuffed dumplings), and sweets. Calgary Ukraine Festival 2025 The Calgary Ukrainain Festival at the Arcadia Recreational Centre in the southeast (Darren Wright, CTV Calgary) There's also a Ukrainian marketplace, a kid zone and a photo zone. Jordan Biss, the vice-chair of the festival, said the festival was more necessary than ever, given the ongoing horror of the war with Russia. '(It's) absolutely crucial,' Biss said, 'and it makes me very proud to help support the Ukrainian community especially with the ongoing atrocious war in Ukraine. 'This really provides an opportunity for new Ukrainians to Calgary and to Canada an opportunity to connect and network with community members of like-mindedness and hopefully get them engaged in the community -- but as well, to share our culture and heritage with local Calgarians.' The festival is at 240 90 Ave. S.E. until 6 p.m. With files from CTV's Darren Wright
CTV News
18-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
Local Ukrainian community celebrates Vyshyvanka Day
The Ukrainian community in Barrie held their third annual 'Vyshyvanka' festival, celebrating the international day of Ukrainian heritage.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Most Russians ‘don't care about the war,' says journalist Ekaterina Barabash after escaping Russia
In early May, 64-year-old film critic and journalist Ekaterina Barabash made international headlines when it was revealed that she had pulled off a daring escape from house arrest in Russia and sought political asylum in France. Barabash was put under house arrest in February for posts that she had made criticizing Russia's war against Ukraine. She was accused of spreading 'knowingly false' information about the military on her social media. The Kremlin has intensified its crackdown on dissent in Russia since the start of its full-scale war against Ukraine, not only targeting those who dare to speak out against the war but also fostering a climate of surveillance that hearkens back to the worst periods of the Soviet era, urging Russian citizens to police one another. For Barabash, the war struck a personal chord — she is the daughter of a renowned Ukrainian academic and her son lives in Ukraine with his family. Unlike many Russians — who either seek to justify the war or retreat into indifference — Barabash felt a moral imperative to speak out 'Most people in Russia aren't willing to look for the truth,' Barabash told the Kyiv Independent from France. 'They've always been taught that Ukraine is just a part of Russia. But this belief is a kind of poison. It's something that every Russian grows up with, often without even realizing it.' In this exclusive interview, Barabash reflects on the moment she decided to risk her life to flee Russia, how her Ukrainian heritage shaped her perspective on Russian culture over the years, why even 'good Russians' who oppose the war don't understand Ukraine, and the bleak future facing anyone with a conscience who chooses to remain in today's Russia. This interview has been edited for length and Kyiv Independent: Since the idea for this interview originally came after you escaped house arrest in Russia, I just wanted to start off by asking, how are you doing? Ekaterina Barabash: I escaped from house arrest in Russia on April 13. I got past the checkpoints and left my home. We had a plan — I was supposed to be free within 24 hours. But things didn't go as expected, and I ended up having to hide for two and a half weeks. Unfortunately, I can't share all the details right now. It's a shame, because some parts are really interesting. Maybe one day I'll write about it — maybe even a small book. During that time, I hid in many places — in forests, fields, villages, and so on. It was a bit frightening and definitely dangerous. I knew I had to leave quickly, and that sense of urgency never left me. We had hoped they wouldn't notice my absence for at least a few hours, but they realized I was gone very quickly — within just minutes, maybe half an hour. They started searching for me almost immediately. I don't know all the details of how the search was carried out. After that, I had to cross the border into a European country. Of course, it was an illegal crossing. From there, things were arranged to help me move forward. A woman from Reporters Without Borders (RSF) came to meet me, and she helped bring me safely to Paris. The Kyiv Independent: Was there a specific moment when you decided that you would take the risk and escape, or did you know from the moment you were arrested that this was what you had to do? Ekaterina Barabash: No, I didn't make the decision right away. At first, when they placed me under house arrest, it felt almost like a breath of fresh air. It was so unexpected — usually, in political cases, people accused of such 'crimes' are held in jail while they await trial. But the judge said that because I had a very old mother, and I myself am not so young, they decided to place me under house arrest until the court date. At first, it gave us hope — even my lawyer believed that I might only receive a large fine rather than jail time. But within a few days, after some conversations with certain people, I realized the risk was very high. The chance of being sentenced to prison was real. I believed I could face five, six, even seven years in a Russian prison — and a Russian prison is worse than death. That was when some people from Europe, who help political prisoners like me, told me clearly: even though I was at home, I needed to plan my escape. At first, I was in shock. I never imagined I would have to leave — especially not my mother, who is 96 years old. But eventually, I realized it was the best option. I had to choose between two impossible outcomes: prison or fleeing the country. So, of course, I chose to escape. That's when we began the operation. I had coordinators from Europe who guided me through every step. They told me what to do, what to prepare, and explained our plan in detail. The Kyiv Independent: What makes your case unique among other Russian opposition figures is that you have very strong ties to Ukraine. Does your Ukrainian heritage influence how you view Russia and Russian culture? Ekaterina Barabash: Yes, I was born in Ukraine, though I was very young when we left — I was only five months old when my parents moved to Moscow. So my entire life has been connected to Russia. I always felt like I had two motherlands: Ukraine and Russia. I was born in Ukraine, but I was raised and educated in Russia, in Moscow. My family has always had very strong ties to Ukraine. My father, who passed away five months ago, was a well-known figure there. He was a literary critic and the author of many books written in Ukrainian. He was highly respected in the academic community. Years earlier, my son also moved to Ukraine for personal reasons. He lives there now with his wife and my grandchildren. So when the war began, my situation was very different from that of my friends in the Russian opposition. For me, it was not just a political crisis — it was a personal tragedy. My closest relatives were there, being targeted by drones and missiles. And I couldn't stay silent. I couldn't hold back my grief or outrage. I couldn't keep this anger and pain inside me. I started to speak out, openly accusing the Russian government and military of killing innocent people and invading Ukraine. I wrote things like, "I hate you — you are murderers." My perspective on the war was deeply personal. It wasn't just politics for me — it was about my family, my roots, and the suffering of people I love. Even intelligent and well-educated Russian people often don't truly understand Ukraine. Almost all Russians have been poisoned by imperial propaganda. They've been raised with it — it's part of their worldview. They've always been taught that Ukraine is just a part of Russia. That the Ukrainian language is just a slightly different version of Russian. That Ukrainians are our "younger brothers," and we are all one people — Russians. I've heard this over and over, even from good people, even from those who are against the war. But this belief is a kind of poison. It's something that every Russian grows up with, often without even realizing it. I knew at least a little about Ukrainian culture and history — something most Russians don't. I've done interviews and written about Ukrainian culture. So yes, my point of view was different from the beginning. The Kyiv Independent: We know that Russia's war against Ukraine started in 2014, not 2022. In what ways did Russian public opinion about the war in Ukraine change during those eight years? Ekaterina Barabash: Most people in Russia simply didn't care — and they still don't. Even many anti-Putin individuals, including some of my friends, didn't grasp that the war actually started in 2014. When the invasion happened in 2022, they acted as if it was the beginning of the war. I had to remind them, "No, the war started eight years ago." Later on, many of them started to understand, at least a little, what had been happening. But the truth is, almost no one cared. They saw (the invasion of Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts) as some small conflict in eastern Ukraine, maybe with some Russian soldiers involved, but they didn't recognize it as the coming of something horrific. They didn't understand the connection between the illegal annexation of Crimea and the war that followed. Yes, Crimea was officially part of Ukraine. But they thought that (Soviet leader Nikita) Khrushchev had 'given' Crimea to Ukraine many years ago and that Russia had long claimed it. Then came the war. The Kyiv Independent: What would you want to say to people still in Russia? Ekaterina Barabash: You know, I've recently realized one thing that I didn't understand at first: it's impossible to change their minds. It's like religion — you either believe or you don't. If you want to know the truth, you can seek out information, but most people in Russia aren't willing to look for it. There's a common response I get when I ask why they don't check alternative sources, like Ukrainian media. There are plenty of (Ukrainian) outlets that offer Russian-language versions of the news, and many people understand English, so they could easily access European media, too. Yet, they only rely on Russian sources. The answer I often hear is, "Everyone lies." They're willing to accept the lies from Russian propaganda, but they won't even consider competing narratives from other sources. "Everyone lies," they say. It's an awful argument — a foolish one, really. It's unfortunate, really, but what can I say to these people? Honestly, there's nothing more I can say. If you're scared, just stay silent. I understand — everyone has families, property, and they don't want to end up in jail. But if you care, then leave Russia, if you can, if it's possible. I know it's not easy to leave behind elderly parents. I never intended to leave mine. But my father told me several times, "Leave, leave, leave. The end will be very, very dramatic." Still, I couldn't bring myself to go. I had to take care of them. But if you care, if you can leave, then do it. Russia is not a place to stay. If you have any sense, you'll understand that. Hey there, Kate Tsurkan here, thanks for reading my latest interview. It's horrific that in Russia you're considered a criminal for calling out the actual criminals who are murdering innocent people, but thankfully we have people in this world like Ekaterina Barabash who are not afraid to call evil what it is. I hope her story inspires you and helps show that if a 64-year-old grandmother can stand up to authoritarianism in this world, then so can you. It you like reading about this sort of thing, Read also: Decolonizing Russia — what it means and why it matters We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
