Hawaii Filipino community joins the outpouring of sadness and condolence for the Filipino Canadian community in Vancouver, British Columbia over the horrific tragedy that occurred on Saturday, May 26. When tragedy strikes our global Filipino community – wherever it might be — we come together offering our moral support.
As a Filipino festival celebrating culture was winding down, a man drove into the crowd killing 11 people and injuring dozens. A family event, those killed ranged in age from five to 65 years old. Interim police Steve Rai called the attack “the darkest day in Vancouver’s history.” Police described the incident as a “car ramming attack.”
Festival goers chased down and detained the suspect, who police identified as 30-year-old Kai-Ji Adam Lo, a man with a history of mental health-related interactions with authorities. As of press time, the motivation for the attack is not known. Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim said, “It would appear that mental health appears to be the underlying issue here.” Rai said the suspect was thought to have operated alone, was the sole occupant of the vehicle, and remains in custody. The British Columbia Prosecution Service charged Lo with eight counts of second-degree murder and said more charges were possible. Investigators ruled out terrorism.
Although the police are not calling the attack an act of terrorism or hate-crime related as of press time, the fact that it occurred at an event celebrating Filipino culture, put together by the Filipino Vancouver community, and at least some or all of those killed are Filipinos – the Filipino global community grieves together in solidarity. While the motivation is not clear, it doesn’t ease the suffering and pain of the victims and their families caused by such a violent, cruel and meaningless act.
This annual festival organized by British Columbia’s Filipino community commemorates Lapu-Lapu, the Mactan chieftain who fought against Spanish colonization in the 1500s. The event takes place the evening before April 27, which is a day that the government of British Columbia officially recognizes as Lapu-Lapu day and acknowledges the cultural contributions of the Filipino Canadian community, one of the largest immigrant groups in the province.
There is also the safety issue going forward. Time and time again, we’ve seen globally vehicles used as mass murder weapons at large outdoor events. At the press conference, a reporter brought up if adequate barriers have been erected to keep festival-goers safe. That’s still under investigation. It’s a sad commentary that we live at a time when outdoor events are becoming less of an option because of compromised crowd safety in which a car is now being used as a deadly weapon.
First-hand accounts
Yoseb Vardeh, a food truck owner who was at the event said he recalled, “an engine revved. It sounded like a car speeding. And then I look up and there’s people flying. It just happened so fast.” He said there were “bodies everywhere” after the driver went “straight down the middle” of the block.
“It’s something you don’t expect to see in your lifetime,” Kris Pangilinan, a Toronto-based journalist, told Canadian public broadcaster CBC. “[The driver] just slammed the pedal down and rammed into hundreds of people. It was like seeing a bowling ball hit — all the bowling pins and all the pins flying up in the air.” He continued, “It was like a war zone… There were bodies all over the ground.”
James Cruzat, a Vancouver business owner, also at the celebration, said, “We saw people on the road crying, others were like running, shouting, or even screaming, asking for help. So we tried to go there just to check what was really actually happening until we found some bodies on the ground. Others were lifeless,” Cruzat said.
Leaders’ comments on the tragedy
Filipinos make up the third-largest ethnic group in Metro Vancouver. In Vancouver, 5.37% of the population is Filipino. Vancouver is home to Canada’s second largest Filipino community.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was “deeply heartbroken” over the attack. “Last night, families lost a sister, a brother, a mother, a father, a son. Those families are experiencing every family’s nightmare,” Carney said. “To them and to the many others who were injured, to the Filipino-Canadian community and to everyone in the broader Lower Mainland (and) Vancouver, I would like to offer my deepest condolences and my wishes for strength and compassion in this tragic time. I know that I join all Canadians in mourning with you.”
British Columbia Premier David Eby said, “I don’t think there is a British Columbian that hasn’t been touched in some way by the Filipino community. You can’t go to a place that delivers and not meet a member of that community in the long-term care home or hospitals, childcare or schools. This is a community that gives and gives and yesterday was a celebration of their culture.” Eby urged people to channel their rage into helping those affected.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, who left the Lapu Lapu Day festival in Vancouver shortly before the deadly incident, said, “To our community, we are still finding the words to express the deep heartbreak brought on by this senseless tragedy. We are devastated for the families and victims. I can’t stop thinking about how much happiness there was, and then to have such a horrific thing happen. Clearly the Filipino community right now is feeling targeted.”
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said those killed in the “unspeakable tragedy” would “not be forgotten” and that Filipino diplomats and staff in Vancouver have been instructed to assist the victims and coordinate with the Canadian authorities.
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