Vancouver – Vancouver Police informed that they have launched an investigation after the Komagata Maru memorial was vandalized for the second time in 14 months.
VPD initiated an investigation on October 4, after learning from a social media post that the glass on the front of the Komagata Maru memorial had been shattered. The memorial, located on the waterfront in Coal Harbour, appears to have been intentionally damaged.
“Detectives from a number of VPD specialized units are working together to collect evidence and identify the suspect(s) in this troubling incident,” said Constable Jason Doucette. “This investigation will take time, but we’ll leave no stone unturned in our attempts to solve this senseless crime.”
“We don’t just want to find the person who did this, but also understand why this cherished memorial was targeted,” added Constable Doucette. “We’re looking into whether this vandalism is connected to a similar crime Saturday morning at the Olympic Cauldron in Jack Poole Plaza.”
Park Board Chair Stuart Mackinnon while expressing his grief, said, “I am saddened and angered to hear of the defacement of the Komagata Maru memorial. This is a despicable, cowardly act that must be called out. The perpetrators must be caught. There is no place for hate in our city.”
This is the second time in as many years that someone has deliberately defaced the Komagata Maru memorial. A four-month Vancouver Police investigation led to the arrest of Yuniar Kurniawan, who is currently charged with mischief, after someone used paint to vandalize the memorial in August 2021.
“This is not the first time this monument has been vandalized, and while the perpetrators’ motivation isn’t yet clear, it shows enormous disrespect to those who travelled and suffered on the ship and to their families. It is shocking and heartbreaking that a community which has been historically marginalized has once again been subjected to a hateful act,” Mackinnon said.
Everyone at the Park Board condemns in the strongest terms this abhorrent act of racism. “We stand in solidarity with the South Asian community,” he added.
Raj Singh Toor, Spokesperson and Vice President of Descendants of the Komagata Maru Society said that such incidents being back painful memories of intolerance and racism.
“This vandalism is a very terrible incident. For the last century, our families have had to live with the experience of being rejected from Canada because of our race, and it is memorials such as these that help us deal with the pain and damage of racism. It is a reminder that we still have a lot of work to do, but the diligent work of the Vancouver Police does give us hope that even in the dark days we are still making progress to building a more tolerant Canada,” Toor added.
He thanked Vancouver Police for taking this vandalism very seriously, and investing their time to investigate this incident.
Anyone with information about this crime is asked to call investigators at 604-717-0613, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
