Ukrainian international student calls out B.C. university for not taking harder stance against invasion
CTV
Liliya Syvystka is just weeks away from finishing her film production program at the University of British Columbia, but as she prepares for her final thesis, her mind is focused on her home country and her loved ones back in Ukraine.
Liliya Syvystka is just weeks away from finishing her film production program at the University of British Columbia, but as she prepares for her final thesis, her mind is focused on her home country and her loved ones back in Ukraine.
"I know that with all my heart and mind I'm fully there," the fourth-year student said. "Even though I'm in Vancouver, I still can react to flying planes, but it's nothing compared to what my friends are experiencing right now. And of course, one part you can feel also guilty that you're so safe."
Her family members are in Kyiv and Kharkiv and have decided to stay. The men in her family have joined the territorial defence forces, she said.
She said her family friends were shot and killed in front of their daughter, highlighting the horrors of war.
"Honestly, no one is safe. They're not safe. You never know when the next bomb is going to fall," she said.
The 22-year-old said she has been frustrated by the university and the president's responses thus far.
President and Vice-Chancellor Santa Ono released a statement on Feb. 24, saying he was deeply concerned about the attacks and the impacts they would have on the university community.
