Have you ever heard of the Holodomor? You probably haven't, and neither had I. But a movie on the subject is coming out later this year that will probably educate a lot of us.
The Holomodor refers to a famine that occurred in the Soviet Ukraine in 1932-33, during which millions of Ukrainians died from starvation because of Soviet Union policies. It is considered one of the greatest peacetime catastrophes.
There is a big controversey as to whether this atrocity would be characterized as a genocide against the Ukrainian people or if the holodomor was just a bad Soviet policy that involved seizing grain from peasant areas to send to the West to sustain its rapid economic policies, which then resulted in the famine. The parliament of Ukraine has labeled it a genocide. The European Parliament calls the act a crime against humanity.
Apparently there is a huge rift between some groups as to this terminology. From this armchair, it comes down to the fact that bad is bad. Does it really matter whether it was a genocide or a failed but intentional policy that starved its citizens? If the latter, the intention to hurt the citizens was still there. Guilty on all counts.
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