The Cold War was one of the most important events in shaping Canada during the twentieth century. Although the world wars were very tragic in their impact, the Cold War stretched over four decades. World War II was barely over and Canada found itself at the epicenter of a new conflict.
Sixty-three years ago this month Igor Gouzenko, a Russian cipher clerk working in Ottawa, defected to Canada with 109 documents on Soviet espionage activities in the West. His defection exposed Joseph Stalin’s efforts to steal nuclear secrets. Some of those damning documents were given to Gouzenko by Emma Woiken.
Emma’s Story
On December 20, 1920, Emma Konkin was born in Blaine Lake, Saskatchewan. The Konkin family was known as tightly loyal, loving and were well-respected in their community. The language spoken in the home was Russian.
Emma attended elementary school finishing grade eight at age twelve. She effortlessly skipped grades and was very excited about going to high school. Unfortunately, Emma was rejected as she was too young.
At fourteen years old, Emma fell in love with Bill Woikin who did not meet the approval of her mother. Their household became riddled with arguments between Emma and her mother. At the age of 58, in August 1936, Pearl Konkin passed away during a stroke. Emma took her mother’s death very hard due to their tumultuous relationship.
Emma turned 16 at the end of 1936. She wasted little time and married Bill Woikin in April 1937. Life was difficult. The summer of 1937 was the worst year of the Depression for Saskatchewan. Having to survive off the land, a staple diet of potatoes and bread became common for Emma and Bill.
In 1938 Emma became pregnant. Tragically on May 21, 1939, her baby boy was delivered with his umbilical cord wrapped around his neck. He passed away.
The death of his child and the years of intense struggle to survive took its toll on Emma’s husband. On March 18, 1942, Bill Woikin committed suicide. Emma discovered his hanging body.
At the age of 21, Emma’s father sent her to secretarial school. In August 1943, Emma accepted a job as a typist in the Department of External Affairs in Ottawa. After five short months, Emma was promoted to cipher clerk. It was her job to turn coded messages from abroad into English, and to take messages from the Canadian government and code them for transmission overseas. The cipher (code) was changed regularly to prevent enemy efforts to break it. Nearby, in the Soviet Embassy, Igor Gouzenko also worked as a cipher clerk.
On May 1, 1944, Emma attended a party and networked with those who worked in the Soviet Embassy. This is when Emma was first approached by Soviet spies.
Emma’s job entailed putting deciphered messages into one of two piles; secret or top secret. In May 1945, Emma provided the first batch of handwritten copies of some of these messages to give to her contact. She never believed she was betraying Canada. She thought she was just helping out Russia.
When Igor Gouzenko defected in September 1945 Prime Minister King conferred with U.S. President Truman. One month later King spoke to Winston Churchill who urged King to make an immediate announcement about the defection.
After an extensive investigation, on February 15, 1946, thirteen people were arrested, one of whom was Emma Woikin. Two and a half years later, at age 27, Emma was released from Kingston Penitentiary. She returned home to her welcoming family.
Emma was able to move on with her life and married Louie Sawula. Although finding a job was difficult, she managed to secure an auspicious career. She became a legal secretary working for Saskatchewan Senator and lawyer, John Hnatyshyn. Given her criminal record, Emma developed an astounding sideline: Saskatoon judges used her services as a court interpreter for Russian and Ukraine people.
Emma Sawula had a fascinating life. At the age of 53, on May 22, 1974, Emma passed away of acute alcoholism. She rests in Saskatoon’s Woodlawn Cemetery.
