Published Aug 04, 2023 • Last updated 11 hours ago • 2 minute read
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, left, and Progress Alberta executive director Duncan Kinney are pictured together in a photo illustration. File/Postmedia jpg
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has apologized to left-wing publisher and activist Duncan Kinney after incorrectly suggesting he had spray painted swastikas on two Ukrainian monuments.
Smith issued the apology via Twitter late Friday afternoon, the day before a long weekend.
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“On May 16, 2023, at a local candidate’s forum in Brooks I responded to a question by making a point that I take questions from media outlets with differing political views and perspectives than my own,” she wrote.
“In my response, I mistakenly said that Duncan Kinney of (Progress Alberta) had pled guilty to criminal charges arising from painting swastikas on Ukrainian monuments.”
Kinney is in fact accused of painting the monuments with anti-Nazi slogans, and has pleaded not guilty. His trial has yet to occur.
“I apologize to Mr. Kinney for my inaccurate description of the matter,” Smith concluded.
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On May 16, 2023, at a local candidate’s forum in Brooks I responded to a question by making a point that I take questions from media outlets with differing political views and perspectives than my own.
In my response, I mistakenly said that Duncan Kinney of the Progress Report…
— Danielle Smith (@ABDanielleSmith) August 4, 2023
Kinney is currently facing mischief charges alleging he spray painted two Ukrainian monuments in Edmonton in 2021.
The Ukrainian Youth Unity Complex’s bust of Roman Shukevych — a Ukrainian nationalist figure who fought with the Nazis and has been implicated in wartime massacres of Jews and Poles — was defaced with the words “actual Nazi.”
The monument to Ukrainian war dead at St. Michael’s Cemetery was also tagged with “Nazi monument” and “14th Waffen SS.”
Kinney wrote about both instances of vandalism for the Progress Report, the media arm of left-wing advocacy group, Progress Alberta. The post claimed the vandalism had been perpetrated by “an unknown person or persons.”
Kinney was charged last fall and is scheduled to face a jury trial next year.
Smith’s comments came to light when a Twitter user following the Brooks forum said Smith referenced Kinney and said he had been “charged after spray-painting swastikas.”
Kinney lawyer Tom Engel quickly threatened legal action, claiming Smith’s comment could bias potential jurors and was the opposite of what prosecutors allege Kinney did.
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Engel declined to comment on Smith’s apology.
Despite calls from Jewish and Polish groups to remove the statues, some Ukrainians continue to lionize Shukevych for his fight for independence from the Soviet Union. After Kinney was charged, the Edmonton branch of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress likened criticism of Shukevych to the “tired Russian propaganda that Vladimir Putin uses to justify his genocidal war in Ukraine.”
Kinney, meanwhile, has vowed a “vigorous defence” and claims the charges were motivated by his criticism of the Edmonton Police Service. EPS denies the claim and noted Crown prosecutors reviewed the case before approving charges.
The case has also impacted Edmonton’s civilian police oversight body, with a former police commissioner accusing city Coun. Anne Stevenson of attempting to influence an unspecified investigation into Kinney. A third-party report cleared Stevenson earlier this year.
Smith has apologized for numerous comments made both as a politician and during her time in media, including comparing vaccinated Albertans to Nazi followers.
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