Kildare's Maynooth University to hold public candlelight vigil on Ukraine and seminar

Maynooth University will host a candlelight vigil in a gesture of support to all their Ukrainian colleagues, students, and graduates, as well as those from the entire region whose families, lives and livelihoods are affected by this crisis during this dark time.

The vigil takes place at the Freedom Sculpture, North Campus, Maynooth University on Monday, March 7 from 1pm to 1.30pm while the seminar will be held at School of Education, North Campus, lecture room SE001 from 1.30pm to 2.30pm.

Maynooth University President, Professor Eeva Leinonen, and Ukrainian PhD student at Maynooth University, Oleg Chupryna, will address the vigil.

This will be followed by a public seminar titled ‘Putin's attack on Ukraine: Explaining the war and what is at stake' by Professor Hana Cervinkova, Dr John Paul Newman, and Professor John O’Brennan, Director of Maynooth University’s Centre for European and Eurasian Studies.

In a letter to the Maynooth University community on Thursday, Prof Eeva Leinonen, said:  “The invasion of Ukraine reminds us that whether they occur in Europe or anywhere in the world, violent acts that threaten democracy, trample free will and block access to essential goods and services are an affront to human rights and must be confronted. It is the responsibility of democratic institutions to speak for those whose voices have been forced underground, and as a University Sanctuary with a history of values grounded in social justice and human rights, I believe firmly that is something Maynooth University must do.”